Emerging Minds and UKRI award funding to the WAIT study

The WAIT study, led by Clinical Trial Manager and Senior Research Fellow at MindTech Dr Charlotte Hall, has been awarded funding by Emerging Minds, and UK Research and Innovation, to explore current interventions offered to children and young people on CAMHS waiting lists.

Waiting for Access Into Treatment “WAIT” study: an exploration of current interventions offered to children and young people on CAMHS waiting lists. 

The overarching aim of this project is to improve timely access to evidence-based interventions. The study will begin on the 1st September 2020 and run for 18 months. 

This collaborative multidisciplinary and multi-methods project, involving patients and clinicians, will provide:

  • The initial evidence base for waiting times for mental health treatment for children and young people (CYP) by disorder and across regions.
  • The waiting-list interventions (WLI; e.g. self-directed interventions) currently offered by disorder post-referral
  • The evidence base for the efficacy of current interventions offered. A brief literature search has shown this information is currently unknown but is vital to facilitate and improve early intervention strategies.

In addressing these three points, the team will identify which interventions may benefit from wider scale adoption across regions. The team aims to identify interventions that require future research to establish clinical and cost-effectiveness and gaps in early provision for specific disorders. This knowledge will inform future grant applications. Establishing an evidence-base for Waiting List Interventions (WLI), that are implemented in routine care, would enable children and young people (CYP) to access timely support and may prevent further deterioration experienced on waitlists.

Accessing WLI may also result in service-efficiencies, resulting in earlier symptom improvement/improved quality of life, requiring fewer sessions of the designated treatment reducing the burden on healthcare systems and result in cost savings.

The team of researchers includes professors and research fellows from the University of Nottingham, based at the Institute of Mental Health. They will also be working with partners from Great Ormond Street NHS Foundation Trust , YoungMinds and Fresh Plus Group. 

For further information visit the WAIT study.