Evaluation of Macmillan Specialist Care at Home Service

Project Duration

May 2014 – July 2016

Funder

Macmillan Cancer Support

Overview

The Macmillan Specialist Care at Home service is designed to enable terminally and chronically ill people to access end of life care locally; in many cases in their own home. This is generally viewed as enabling better quality of life than repeated admissions and re-admissions to hospital might provide. 

This project sets out to provide an evaluation of such services and is also designed to build capacity with regard to self-evaluation; by integrating and embedding sustainable evaluative processes into those centres implementing these services.

Aims

Findings will provide: 

• A critical reflection on the development of the Programme and the individual Innovation Centres within it
• Identification of factors that contribute to success or otherwise in terms of what works, for whom and under what circumstances
• Information on impact and outcomes in terms of resource utilisation and cost effectiveness
• Resources and support to assist in the development of building capacity for Innovation Centres to establish robust self-evaluation
• Shaping of recommendations for future development

Methods

The evaluation will adopt a mixed methods approach involving four main elements: 

1. Evaluation participatory training workshop: A one day workshop will be held for identified personnel across the six Innovation Centres (May 2014, hosted by Macmillan). The overall aim is to develop a shared approach for the Innovation Centres to adopt, with the aim of establishing robust standardised evaluative practices within the Centres. To be followed up with regular 'learn and share' events.
2. Six detailed case studies: Six in-depth case studies of the selected Innovation Centres will be conducted, adopting a mixed methods approach and collecting quantitative data alongside in-depth narrative approaches to understanding of what works, for whom and under what circumstances.
3. Economic Review of the Innovation Centres: The overall purpose of the economic evaluation will be to identify and report the effect of the Specialist Care at Home service on referrals, resource use and patient outcomes.
   National stakeholder enquiry: This will involve telephone interviews in the initial and final phases of the evaluation with a representative range of policy and strategic level stakeholders identified in liaison with Macmillan. At the initial phase, these interviews will assist in developing an understanding of the issues, challenges and potential outcomes for the delivery of home care specialist palliative care, and the final phase interviews will gather views on the contribution of this programme of work and future development of home based specialist palliative care models.

Stage of Development

This is a current project.