Abstract Background.Growing research expectations and opportunities in community care require an understanding of community research capacity and culture. To support the shifting focus from hospital care to community care, research evidence can guide new models of care and help tackle increasing clinical demands. The healthcare professionals delivering community care - often nurses, pharmacists, allied health and mental health professionals - need the capacity to address the research priorities in their community services. The aim of this study was to understand research capacity and culture in the context of an NHS community healthcare setting. Methods.We planned four inter-related workstreams to evaluate research activity, outputs and perceptions of research culture and aspirations in a large UK Community Healthcare NHS Trust. We completed a database review to quantify studies delivered; a literature review identifying journal publications and conference abstracts authored by Trust staff/affiliates; online surveys and semi-structured interviews to explore research perceptions and aspirations across staff groups. Results. One third of services were research active, delivering research studies and/ or publishing research findings. Services with embedded clinical academics were most research active. Service-level managers’ perceptions of research capacity did not match the more optimistic perceptions of senior Trust leaders. Staff and senior Trust leaders reported an aspiration to improve the level of research attainment across all staff groups. Senior Trust leaders aspired to the highest level of research attainment (leading research to generate new knowledge) for advanced practitioners. Discussion. Whilst there was variation in research activity across services and disparities in perceptions of research culture and capability across staff groups, there was a universal aspiration to achieve higher levels of research attainment across all staff groups in this community healthcare NHS organisation. To facilitate this, a focus on developing advanced practice research capability and establishing research leadership within services may be important.
Comer et al. (Thu,) studied this question.