Diary study

Introduction

This page contains information for Clinical Research Network Public Health Practitioners and other embedded researchers interested in taking part in a diary study. The diary study aims to collect information about day-to-day life as an embedded researcher. If you are interested in taking part, please get in touch with the researchers.

The information below is a summary of an information sheet that is provided to all participants. Participants will also be asked to sign a consent sheet confirming that they understand the terms of participation.

Who is conducting the research and why?

This research project is being led by the EPPI-Centre at University College London. It aims to understand the influence that Clinical Research Network Public Health Practitioners (CRN-PRPs) have on decision-making cultures in Local Authorities and particularly their influence on research.

The diary study aims to capture details about the types of activities undertaken in the CRN-PRP role, how people in this role interact with others and the experiences and perceptions of CRN-PHPs in their role.

This will involve completing entries for up to 5 working days with prompts to guide you. We would ask that the fifth day corresponds with your final working day of that week (e.g. if you usually work Monday-Wednesdays we would like the final entry to be made on the Wednesday where possible).

Why am I being invited to take part?

You are being invited to take part because you are working in this role (i.e. you are a researcher or research facilitator working closely with public health teams within a Local Authority/Local Authorities, and your post is fully or partially funded through the NIHR Clinical Research Network).

What will happen if I choose to take part?

You will be emailed with a link to a survey, which you will be asked to complete up to 5 times on consecutive days that you work in your CRN-PHP role to reflect a snapshot of your working time. For example, if your CRN-PHP role is two days a week, we would like you to complete the survey each working day for five days. The survey will take 10-15 minutes to complete, and we would like this completed towards the end of the working day. The last day contains additional questions and you would need to allow a further 10 minutes to complete the survey.

There is the option of participating in a follow-up diary study in 4-6 months time, which will enable us to compare findings with the original study. You do not need to commit to doing this at this stage.

What is the benefit to me of being involved?

You will be contributing to research aiming to improve the way we view evidence and research in public health decision-making. Our findings will develop ideas on how to create a culture of research activity and engagement within Local Authority Public Health teams.

You will receive a £50 (as a ‘Love2Shop’ voucher or you can request a bank transfer) upon completion of the diary entries across 5 days.

Could there be problems for me if I take part?

You are not asked to provide any sensitive or personal information in the research, although you are free to discuss your own personal experiences if you wish. You might find discussing some aspect of your role can make you feel uncomfortable, although you are free to express any emotions or thoughts and your responses will be anonymous.

Will anyone know I have been involved?

Your participation will be kept confidential. You will not be named in any documents that come from the research and any identifiers (e.g. of the Local Authority with which you work closely) will be removed.

What will happen to the results?

The results will contribute to a process evaluation to understand how Public Health Practitioners work in Local Authority teams. The diary survey is one of a number of strands. Other strands include interviews with CRN-PHPs and colleagues, focus groups and document analysis. Your responses will contribute to our understanding and will be integrated with other evidence we collect. We may use occasional quotes to support our explanations in the write up, but only where they do not disclose your identity and your responses will be anonymous and remain confidential.

Do I have to take part?

No, it is entirely up to you whether or not you choose to take part. You can also withdraw from the study at any time during the interview if you decide you no longer want to take part without any penalty. If you choose not to take part or to withdraw, we will not share this information with anyone.