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A series of projects focusing on the medical, social, and emotional experience of pre-pregnancy, pregnancy, and early motherhood have been undertaken since 2006 at Plymouth University. The impact of these projects is wide ranging covering both policy and practice. The research has: changed the physical environment of the antenatal clinic specifically to suit the needs of pregnant women with pre-existing diabetes; developed an online leaflet for women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS); developed training programmes for health and social care professionals; provided baseline information to inform practitioners and patients involved in UK screening programmes; and, informed screening strategies for Downs Syndrome.
This case study is based on two areas of research, both focused on young women's sexual health, conducted by Hoggart and Newton between 2009 and 2013. The first concerns abortion, and the second concerns long-acting reversible contraception (hereafter LARC). The research has had the following impacts: sexual health policy has been influenced; the delivery of sexual health service has changed; guidelines have been informed; practitioners have used the research findings; new clinical processes have been adopted; professional training has been influenced by the research; and industry has invested in research.
The impact described involves significant contributions to international and national policy development and practitioner/public engagement, emanating from the findings of longitudinal qualitative research on parenthood transitions, gender and caring. These findings have influenced international policy evidenced though advisory roles and policy development at the World Health Organisation and national policy through engagement with think tanks, public/practitioner bodies (e.g. National Childbirth Trust) and membership of a Labour party policy review panel on fatherhood. The research findings have promoted public engagement, led to media invitations, been cited as evidence in policy review, noted in Hansard and led to change in professional practise.
The focus of the case is Social Network Analysis (SNA) which allows patterns of relations between actors (human and other entities) to be modelled and combined with actors' attributes. Edinburgh Napier University has applied these methods across a wide range of fields, achieving impacts both in the UK and internationally to make improvements in areas of health, commerce and policy. Methods have been applied to improve: the well-being of women and substance abusers in Bangladesh; the performance of supply chains; to demonstrate the effectiveness of prisoner management in reducing recidivism; and, to assess the effectiveness of health promotion initiatives.
The IOE's Evidence for Policy and Practice Information and Co-ordinating (EPPI) Centre has helped UK and overseas governments to make better-informed decisions on education, public health and health education, social welfare and international development, through the use of systematic reviews. The internationally-respected research team has done this by developing and improving methods and tools that produce a broader range of high quality, reliable studies better able to answer policy-makers' questions. EPPI trains civil servants to formulate effective research questions, supports NICE and WHO in ensuring the validity of their guidelines, and works with governments across the EU to build capacity in evidence-informed policy and practice in education.