Investigating attrition at an NHS adult weight management service
| ISRCTN | ISRCTN47665675 |
|---|---|
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN47665675 |
| Secondary identifying numbers | 24002 |
- Submission date
- 26/07/2018
- Registration date
- 30/07/2018
- Last edited
- 08/01/2019
- Recruitment status
- No longer recruiting
- Overall study status
- Completed
- Condition category
- Nutritional, Metabolic, Endocrine
Plain English summary of protocol
Background and study aims
Patient dropout is a significant concern for weight management interventions. It has been shown that dropout rates reach up to 82% of participants, and are typically highest in clinical obesity interventions. This results in wasted NHS resources, as missed appointments incurs costs up to £160, and high dropout rates also wastes resources used to run the service. As well as this, higher levels of retention and completion are understood to improve treatment outcomes, therefore more patients are likely to benefit and have improved results from increased completion and retention rates. To develop effective interventions to improve patient retention and completion, it is first required to understand what factors are contributing to patients dropping out of treatment and completing treatment. The aim of this study is to conduct interviews with patients from the service, to discuss what factors they believe contributed to them either dropping out or completing treatment, and to use this information to guide the development of interventions to improve current dropout and retention rates.
Who can participate?
Any patient who has attended at the Aneurin Bevan University Health Board adult weight management service, who has previously provided consent to be contacted following treatment.
What does the study involve?
Potential participants are recruited by staff from the adult weight management service, informed of the study, and given at least 24 hours to consider whether they would like to participate, and provide written consent should they volunteer to participate. Participants are invited to attend either a face-to-face interview or an interview over the telephone. The interview is expected to last no longer than 30 minutes, and following this the participants involvement ends.
What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
There is likely to be no immediate benefits to the participants. Future patients may benefit from this research, as the service aims to use the findings from this study to guide further interventions to help patients remain within their treatment, with the aim of improving patient’s treatment outcomes. Due to the nature of this research there are no physical risks associated with participation, but as weight stigma is a recognised issue within society, the discussions may be upsetting and may cause anxiety for the participant. In order to overcome this, participants are made aware they do not have to discuss any information that they feel uncomfortable with, and can refuse to answer any question without giving reason.
Where is the study run from?
The study is being ran in collaboration between Cardiff Metropolitan University, and Aneurin Bevan University Health Board. Locations to conduct the study will be hospitals and/or health centres within the health board area.
When is the study starting and how long will it last?
June 2018 to December 2018
Who is funding the study?
European Union KESS2 grant
Who is the main contact?
1. Dr Enzo Di Battista
Enzo.DiBattista@wales.nhs.uk
2. Dr Tina Alwyn
TAlwyn@cardiffmet.ac.uk
Contact information
Public
Adult Weight Management Service
Saint Cadoc's Hospital
Lodge Rd
Caerleon
Newport
NP18 3XQ
United Kingdom
| Phone | +44 (0)7817012118 |
|---|---|
| Enzo.DiBattista@wales.nhs.uk |
Study information
| Study design | Qualitative study using semi-structured interviews |
|---|---|
| Primary study design | Observational |
| Secondary study design | Qualitative study |
| Study setting(s) | Hospital |
| Study type | Other |
| Participant information sheet | Not available in web format, please use contact details to request a participant information sheet. |
| Scientific title | A qualitative investigation using semi-structured interviews to explore patient perspectives of factors relating to attrition and retention in an NHS multi-disciplinary weight management service for adults with obesity |
| Study objectives | This study is being undertaken due to the high rates of attrition in and NHS adult weight management service. This is undermining treatment efficacy, resulting in wasted NHS resources, and in addition, it is understood that greater levels of treatment exposure improves outcomes, and consequently there is a need to better understand why patients do or do not complete their treatment. |
| Ethics approval(s) | Welsh Research Ethics Committee 7, 27/06/2018, ref: 18/WA/0121 |
| Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied | Obesity |
| Intervention | This study will employ qualitative methods, specifically semi-structured interviews with patients who have attended the NHS adult weight management service within the Aneurin Bevan University Health Board. Two sets of interviews will take place, one will explore the perspectives and experiences of patients who have stayed within the service, and one will explore those who dropped out of their treatment. The aim of this qualitative investigation is to explore the perspectives of patients who have attended the adult weight management service. The primary outcome which we aim to achieve will be the discovery of key insights which may help us to understand why patients either complete or drop-out of their treatment. This information will be used to inform the development of an intervention using a digital platform, with the aim of better engaging and retaining service patients, to improve weight loss outcomes. Dropout rates of the service will likely be measured at 3 and 7 months of treatment. |
| Intervention type | Other |
| Primary outcome measure | 1. The perspectives of patients who have attended the adult weight management service to understand why patients either complete or drop-out of their treatment, assessed using two sets of interviews 2. Dropout rates of the service measured at 3 and 7 months of treatment |
| Secondary outcome measures | Retention rate within the service following the development and implementation of a digital intervention aimed to improve engagement with the service, measured during a 7-month period in which patients attend the weight management service, likely to be measured at 3 and 7 months of treatment |
| Overall study start date | 25/06/2018 |
| Completion date | 29/02/2020 |
Eligibility
| Participant type(s) | Patient |
|---|---|
| Age group | Adult |
| Sex | Both |
| Target number of participants | 20-30 |
| Key inclusion criteria | 1. Patients who have attended the Adult Weight Management Service (NHS Aneurin Bevan University Health Board) for the treatment of obesity, identified by a body mass index equal to or above 30kg/m2 2. Gave consent to be contacted following their treatment |
| Key exclusion criteria | 1. Patients who have not given consent to be contacted following treatment 2. Individuals with diagnosed learning disabilities |
| Date of first enrolment | 03/09/2018 |
| Date of final enrolment | 31/10/2019 |
Locations
Countries of recruitment
- United Kingdom
- Wales
Study participating centre
Newport
NP20 4SZ
United Kingdom
Sponsor information
University/education
Llandaff campus
200 Western Avenue
Cardiff
CF5 2YB
Wales
United Kingdom
| Phone | +44 (0)29 2041 6070 |
|---|---|
| cshs@cardiffmet.ac.uk | |
| Website | http://www.cardiffmet.ac.uk/Pages/default.aspx |
"ROR" |
https://ror.org/00bqvf857 |
Funders
Funder type
Government
No information available
Results and Publications
| Intention to publish date | 28/02/2021 |
|---|---|
| Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to share | No |
| IPD sharing plan summary | Not expected to be made available |
| Publication and dissemination plan | The plan is to publish the study results in a high impact journal which focuses on obesity research. The date of expected plans to publish are as yet unclear, as this research is part of a PhD. The trialists plan to disseminate the results at relevant conferences, including the UK Congress on Obesity and the European Congress on Obesity. Research documents which do not contain information that undermines the anonymity and confidentiality of patients will be made available, including the study protocol and data analysis plan. This is not available online, the research team would need to be contacted personally for this information. |
| IPD sharing plan | The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are not expected to be made available as this is a qualitative investigation, doing so may compromise patient confidentiality and anonymity. Additionally, the trialists have not been granted specific permission to offer this data by the ethics committee. |
Study outputs
| Output type | Details | Date created | Date added | Peer reviewed? | Patient-facing? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HRA research summary | 28/06/2023 | No | No |
Editorial Notes
08/01/2019: The following changes have been made:
1. The recruitment end date has been updated from 14/12/2018 to 31/10/2019.
2. The overall trial end date has been updated from 21/12/2018 to 29/02/2020.
3. The intention to publish date has been updated from 21/12/2019 to 28/02/2021.
