Designing a Library of Lived Experience for Mental Health: integrated realist synthesis and experience-based co-design study in UK mental health services

OBJECTIVE

Living Library events involve people being trained as living 'Books', who then discuss aspects of their personal experiences in direct conversation with attendees, referred to as 'Readers'. This study sought to generate a realist programme theory and a theory-informed implementation guide for a Library of Lived Experience for Mental Health (LoLEM).

DESIGN

Integrated realist synthesis and experience-based co-design.

SETTING

Ten online workshops with participants based in the North of England.

PARTICIPANTS

Thirty-one participants with a combination of personal experience of using mental health services, caring for someone with mental health difficulties and/or working in mental health support roles.

RESULTS

Database searches identified 30 published and grey literature evidence sources which were integrated with data from 10 online co-design workshops conducted over 12 months. The analysis generated a programme theory comprising five context-mechanism-outcome (CMO) configurations. Findings highlight how establishing psychological safety is foundational to productive Living Library events (CMO 1). For Readers, direct conversations humanise others' experiences (CMO 2) and provide the opportunity to flexibly explore new ways of living (CMO 3). Through participation in a Living Library, Books may experience personal empowerment (CMO 4), while the process of self-authoring and co-editing their story (CMO 5) can contribute to personal development. This programme theory informed the co-design of an implementation guide highlighting the importance of tailoring event design and participant support to the contexts in which LoLEM events are held.

CONCLUSIONS

The LoLEM has appeal across stakeholder groups and can be applied flexibly in a range of mental health-related settings. Implementation and evaluation are required to better understand the positive and negative impacts on Books and Readers.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

PROSPERO CRD42022312789.

Designing a library of lived experience for mental health (LoLEM): protocol for integrating a realist synthesis and experience based codesign approach

INTRODUCTION

People with lived expertise in managing mental health challenges can be an important source of knowledge and support for other people facing similar challenges, and for carers to learn how best to help. However, opportunities for sharing lived expertise are limited. Living libraries support people with lived expertise to be 'living books', sharing their experiences in dialogue with 'readers' who can ask questions. Living libraries have been piloted worldwide in health-related contexts but without a clear model of how they work or rigorous evaluation of their impacts. We aim to develop a programme theory about how a living library could be used to improve mental health outcomes, using this theory to codesign an implementation guide that can be evaluated across different contexts.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

We will use a novel integration of realist synthesis and experience-based codesign (EBCD) to produce a programme theory about how living libraries work and a theory and experience informed guide to establishing a library of lived experience for mental health (LoLEM). Two workstreams will run concurrently: (1) a realist synthesis of literature on living libraries, combined with stakeholder interviews, will produce several programme theories; theories will be developed collaboratively with an expert advisory group of stakeholders who have hosted or taken part in a living library and will form our initial analysis framework; a systematic search will identify literature about living libraries; data will be coded into our analysis framework, and we will use retroductive reasoning to explain living libraries' impacts across multiple contexts. Individual stakeholder interviews will help refine and test theories; (2) data from workstream 1 will inform 10 EBCD workshops with people with experience of managing mental health difficulties and health professionals to produce a LoLEM implementation guide; data from this process will also inform the theory in workstream 1.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

Ethical approval was granted by Coventry and Warwick National Health Service Research Ethics Committee on 29 December 2021 (reference number 305975). The programme theory and implementation guide will be published as open access and shared widely through a knowledge exchange event, a study website, mental health provider and peer support networks, peer reviewed journals and a funders report.

PROSPERO REGISTRATION DETAILS

CRD42022312789.

Measuring quality of life in oculoplastic patients

AIM

To investigate if there is any published evidence of impaired quality of life in conditions which are corrected by oculoplastic surgery and whether there is proven benefit in the quality of life such procedures.

METHODS

We searched a number of databases to determine the level of evidence available for common conditions amenable to oculoplastic surgery. Search terms concentrated on quality of life measures rather than anatomical correction of deformities.

RESULTS

The level of evidence available for different conditions was very variable. Certain conditions had extensive research documenting reduction in quality of life, with some evidence for improvement after surgery. Some other common conditions had little or no evidence supporting of reduction in quality of life to support the need for surgery.

CONCLUSION

The evidence is sparse for quality of life improvement after some of our most commonly performed procedures. Many of these procedures are now being identified by primary care trusts (PCTs) as of "low clinical value", and are no longer being routinely commissioned in certain parts of the UK. There is a need to address this lack of evidence to determine whether oculoplastic surgery should continue to be commissioned by PCTs.

Paediatric powered endonasal dacryocystorhinostomy

Dacryocystorhinostomy (DCR) is indicated in children with persistent nasolacrimal duct obstruction (NLDO). Endoscopic endonasal DCR has been successfully performed in both adults and children, with success rates similar to that of external DCR. This paper aims to evaluate the outcomes of paediatric patients undergoing endonasal endoscopic DCR at a district general hospital. A retrospective review of all patients attending a joint lacrimal clinic undergoing endonasal endoscopic DCR between October 2001 and December 2008 was performed. Sixteen children (17 eyes) aged between 2 and 14 were analysed. The main outcome measure was resolution of symptoms. Fourteen cases (82%) presented with epiphora with or without stickiness. Three cases had recurrent dacryocystitis. Three patients had Down syndrome. There were no operative complications. During a mean post-operative period of 12 months, all but one case showed an improvement of symptoms. While 60% of the patients had a complete resolution of symptoms, the remaining were minimally symptomatic. Of those with residual symptoms, two had Down syndrome. Endonasal DCR is a safe and effective intervention for children with persistent NLDO. Success is higher in children with no craniofacial abnormality. Joint care under a consultant Oculoplastic and ENT surgeon provides optimum care for these patients.

Orbital emphysema: an unusual complication of balloon dacryocystoplasty

Balloon dacryocystoplasty is a procedure used in the treatment of partial nasolacrimal duct obstruction. A case of orbital emphysema following one such procedure is reported here. The risk factors associated with this rare event are highlighted.

Oculoplastic reconstruction following Mohs surgery

PURPOSE

Mohs micrographic surgery has been advocated as the optimal management of nonmelanoma skin cancer in the periocular region. It is a technique that is ideally suited to the removal of skin tumours with a contiguous growth pattern such as basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma, allowing examination of 100% of the surgical margin. As a result of this total margin control, the technique offers an unsurpassed curve rate combined with maximal preservation of normal tissue. Following excision of a periocular tumour by a Mohs surgeon, the resulting defect usually requires reconstruction. Our objective was to determine whether the size of defect produced by Mohs surgery and the type of reconstruction required differed from the results we would have expected from standard surgery with a 3 mm excision margin.

METHODS

A Mohs surgery service with a combined dermatological and oculoplastic approach was set up in Manchester in 1994. We reviewed 60 of our patients who underwent Mohs surgery and compared the size of defect produced as well as the type of reconstruction required with the results we would have predicted for standard excisional surgery with a 3 mm margin.

RESULTS

Although a minority of patients required larger reconstructions than would have been anticipated (20%), many had smaller reconstructions than we had predicted (37%). This latter group often had important structures preserved, and therefore had the benefit of less extensive reconstructive surgery.

CONCLUSIONS

Excision of a periocular tumour by Mohs surgery may occasionally identify extensive subclinical tumour extension and so produce an unexpectedly large defect for reconstruction. Many patients, however, require less extensive reconstructive surgery than would have been predicted. This produces benefits in terms not only of improved cosmesis and eyelid function, but also reduced operating theatre costs.

A study of the hydroxyapatite orbital implant drilling procedure

PURPOSE

The hydroxyapatite orbital implant has been introduced as a buried, integrated implant for use in the anophthalmic patient. The second stage of the procedure involves drilling the implant and inserting a motility peg that allows direct coupling of the artificial eye to the implant. Other authors have advocated an assessment of implant vascularity by imaging prior to drilling. We aimed to see whether our practice of drilling after a predetermined time interval without assessment of implant vascularity would result in a higher complication rate. We also aimed to determine how successful the drilling procedure was in improving both the motility and the stability of the artificial eye.

METHODS

The notes of 41 consecutive patients who underwent drilling were studied to determine the time interval between implantation with a hydroxyapatite sphere and drilling, the nature of any complications and any further surgical procedures undertaken. A postal questionnaire was sent to all patients asking them to grade the motility of their implant before and after drilling, and to state whether or not there had been any improvement in the stability of their artificial eye.

RESULTS

The most frequent complication encountered was extrusion of the motility peg, which occurred in 3 patients. A total of 5 patients required redrilling. There was an 80% response rate to the questionnaire. Ninety-one per cent of patients felt that there had been an improvement in the motility of their artificial eye and 76% felt that the stability of their artificial eye had been improved.

CONCLUSION

Pegging of the hydroxyapatite implant improves both the motility and the stability of the artificial eye in the majority of cases. Complications are infrequent and minor. If sufficient time is allowed after implantation for full implant vascularity to occur, it is not necessary to perform imaging studies. This practice does not result in an increase in complications, and significantly reduces the expense of the procedure.