NORTHUMBERLAND ‘FISHNets’ ACTION RESEARCH EVALUATION Dr Pam Dawson Glenda Cook

NORTHUMBERLAND FISHNets One of 19 first wave ‘Partnerships for Older People Projects’ (POPPs), which aim to develop low level basic services to keep older people at home for longer and prevent or delay hospital admission and the need for residential/nursing home care. Northumberland Care Trust plus partners successfully bid for more than £1m over 2½ years from the Department of Health. Part of a nationwide £60m programme.

FISHNets aims to prevent falls and reduce bed days by helping older people stay Fit Involved Safe Healthy through investment in sustainable community Networks

FISHNets TASK GROUPS Older people’s partnership board. Communication. Education and training. Accreditation. Intermediate Care. Physical activity. Home environment.

POPPs EVALUATION LOCAL EVALUATIONS AT EACH POPP PILOT SITE NATIONAL EVALUATION Commissioned by the DH to assess value for money and cost savings. measure impact of POPP on quality of life of older people. extract the learning from across the sites.

FISHNets LOCAL EVALUATION Action research evaluation Northumbria University Research Centre for Health Community and Education Studies (CHESs) Economic evaluation Newcastle University Centre for Health Services Research (CHSR)

Action research evaluation Our chosen operational definition of AR A period of inquiry that describes, interprets and explains social situations while executing a change intervention aimed at improvement and involvement. It is problem focused, context-specific and future-oriented. (Waterman et al 2001)

Action research aims To map service initiatives/developments arising through FISHNets and ascertain the impact of these initiatives on service design and delivery. To explore the impact of FISHNets on the health, well being and QoL of older people. To contribute to organisational learning through the evaluation strategy.

Action research methods Older people trained as researchers to conduct interviews with their peers. Schedule for Evaluation of Individual Quality of Life (SEIQoL) to be used for exploring impact of specific interventions Collaborative learning groups inclusive of stakeholders and older people. Assessment of achievement of sub group targets.

Action research cycle Problem identification Evaluate Planning 1 st action step Reframe problem and/or amend plan 2 nd action step 2 nd cycle 1st cycle Each subgroup’s objectives and proposed outcomes will be integrated into a cyclical process … leaving FISHNets with a sustainable model for continued development beyond the pilot

Critical incident 1 ETHICS AND RESEARCH GOVERNANCE

Critical incident 2 PARTICIPATION AND POLITICS

Critical incident 3 LOCAL VERSUS NATIONAL EVALUATION