The ENRICH Network aims to improve the health and well-being of people living in Care homes or receiving Home Care and staff by building new knowledge, bridging gaps in research, applying knowledge to practice, supporting staff development and sharing learning across the Network.

We are currently extending our ENRICH approach and we are seeking expressions of interest from forward-thinking home care service providers to sign up and become a member of the ENRICH Network and in turn, hear more about opportunities for participation in high-quality, innovative research studies of relevance to home care service providers, their teams, home care service users and their family members.  

Taking part in high-quality research can improve health and well-being by building new knowledge, bridging gaps in research, and in applying knowledge to practice and will not only help your home care service to contribute to shaping the health of the nation but also will give your service the chance to take advantage of new treatments or resources that are not yet available to the general population.  The research studies we share with you will have ethical approval. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the important role of home care within our society and how this service is paramount in supporting the health and wellbeing of individuals living in our communities with health and social care needs.  We hope through the implementation, exploration, and support of research to further the advancement of the social care sector and in working together, influence, be part of, and explore together health and care research.

• Inform you of opportunities to take part in high-quality research with no obligation to take part

• Assist with the setup and delivery of a research study - most studies will require minimal resources from the home care service 

• Advise on consent procedures

• Provide access to funding to reimburse staff time and involvement in research

• Help with decision-making about whether a study is right  for your home care service

• Advise on how research can  work around your schedule 

• Continued support throughout the study including conversations and  communication between you and the study team

• Provide access to free research training

• Invitations to events about  local research opportunities and the latest findings that might impact on your work

Benefits of research:

• Enables home care service providers to learn of new developments, which can contribute to delivery of improvements in the home care organisation’s business and marketing plans

• Helps demonstrate to the public that the home care sector is actively focused on good care and improving delivery

• Provides an effective voice for service users, families and staff whose views may have been previously unheard

For home care staff:

• Additional training, and support, discuss new practices, learn new skills, and network with other home care organisations. These are busy environments and so the level of involvement needs to be managed to suit the individual circumstances of the organisation

• Increased job satisfaction and well-being for staff; creating an atmosphere that encourages excellence and improvement

• Provides your service with the latest information on science and technology advances

We want home care staff and service users to feel like active members who shape our network. In recognition of the valuable role home care services play in managing the needs of those living in their own home and the unique skills, systems and challenges this brings, we aim to work in partnership with home care service providers, home care managers, staff, service users and family members to achieve an inclusive research network.

Individuals being cared for in home  care settings may benefit from research findings and may also benefit from participation in research. Research helps find answers to the things that are unknown, filling gaps in knowledge and changing the ways that people work in turn bringing about improvements in treatment, care and the quality of life of those receiving home care. Insights gained from research could also help to allay any possible family concerns about the quality of care being offered to their loved one.

By signing up you are not committing to anything, we will keep you updated on: 

• New studies

• Resources and research results

• Training and opportunities for staff

or for more information email us at wm.rrdn@nihr.ac.uk

Please mark the email for the attention of ENRICH