In today’s Margaret Butterworth Care Home Forum findings from The Care Homes Independent Pharmacist Prescribing Study (CHIPPS) were discussed as were findings from the VIVALDI study, which informed the public health response to COVID-19 in care homes.

Around 37 people attended the online webinar and the audience, as always, was a mix of care home practitioners, managers, and academics interested in care home and dementia research.

The first speakers were Professor David Wright and Dr Linda Birt from the School of Healthcare at the University of Leicester. They presented results from the NIHR programme of research The Care Homes Independent Pharmacist Prescribing Study (CHIPPS). They first reported on the CHIPPS randomised control trial where Pharmacist Independent Prescribers worked in care homes to review medication management for individual residents and across care home procedures. A triad approach was adopted where pharmacists worked within GP surgeries and had direct contact with care homes. The process evaluation highlighted implications for practice including the importance of trusting relationships across the triad.

In addition, David and Linda shared news of their current and upcoming care home research studies. These are around peer mentoring family carers to support difficult end of life discussions, developing best practice on bereavement in care homes, and evaluating the use of medication records in care homes.

The second half of the forum was dedicated to Professor Laura Shallcross’ work, based at the UCL Institute of Health Informatics, on the national VIVALDI study. Laura discussed findings from VIVALDI and her experiences of working in partnership with care providers and policymakers to rapidly generate research and translate findings into policy. Furthermore, she talked about the new VIVALDI Social Care study, which aims to reduce the impact of common infections (like influenza and norovirus) that have a major, detrimental impact on resident’s physical, mental health and wellbeing. And finally, Laura dedicated time to share work in progress around a long-term programme of research & sentinel-surveillance at the interface between health and care. This programme will be coproduced with the care sector and informs public health policy and decision-making.

Attendees were grateful for the speaker’s presentations, some mentioning they had worked with the speakers. One attendee said “absolutely amazing, I temporary worked in HPT during [a COVID-19] outbreak and fab to see where the guidance came from,” demonstrating how helpful knowledge exchange and contextualising research can be.

This was the last Margaret Butterworth Care Home Forum of 2023; we will share details of the next forum early next year.

This event report by Olivia Luijnenburg.