Government support for health research outlined in key documents:

The NHS Long Term Plan:

The NHS Long Term Plan, published in January 2019, highlights the importance of research in various areas, and additionally makes a commitment that 1million people will register to participate in research (not only dementia) by 2023/24.

NICE Guidance:

Guidelines for health and social care professionals, published on 20th June 2018, include a recommendation to tell people living with dementia and their carers about research studies they could participate in. You can read the full NICE guidelines here.

NHS Constitution:

The NHS Constitution published in July 2015, commits the NHS to informing patients about research studies which they may be eligible to participate in.

The Health and Social Care Act 2012:

The Health and Social Care Act received Royal Assent in March 2012. It places unprecedented duties and powers to promote and support research on the Secretary of State and NHS Bodies.

Dementia: Good Care Planning:

In NHS England’s ‘Dementia: Good Care Planning’ document, published in February 2017, Join Dementia Research is mentioned in the ‘Core elements of a care plan’ section, asking if the person living with dementia and their carer(s) have been offered the chance/support to register with the service and /or participate in local research projects.

Memory Service National Accreditation Programme

The Royal College of Psychiatrists’ Centre for Quality Improvement (CCQI) has developed an approach to supporting local service improvement. The Memory Service National Accreditation Programme (MSNAP) applies this approach to memory services. The purpose of MSNAP is to:

  • help memory services to evaluate themselves against agreed standards;
  • award accreditation to services that meet the required level of performance;
  • support local clinical and service improvement in line with the standards;
  • produce a local report that highlights achievements and areas for improvement;
  • produce a national report which allows a local service to compare its performance against other participating services.

The National Audit Office has recommended that “Primary Care Trusts commission sufficient memory services, which are based on best practice and accredited by the Memory Services National Accreditation Programme”.

The MSNAP Standards for Memory Services asks that memory services:

1. (1.1) the memory service demonstrates that there is a commitment to ongoing quality improvement and research.

2. (1.2.6) the service provides people with dementia and their carers with information about opportunities to participate in local, national and international research, such as National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) portfolio studies or equivalent local bodies (measured in indicator 2).

3. (1.2.7) the service ensures that all people with dementia and their carers are asked if they would like to add their details to a research participation register, e.g. Join Dementia Research (measured in indicator 2).

To meet these standards, memory services are encouraged to review the content of our toolkit. Materials to support promotion and sharing of research opportunities are available free of charge. Visit the Print Resource Ordering Centre to order materials.