Clinical trial NCT04203966: Mental Health and Well-being of People Who Seek Help From Their Member of Parliament
Official title: Mental Health and Well-being of People Who Seek Help From Their Member of Parliament
Study type: OBSERVATIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Conditions: Common Mental Disorders
Alcohol Use Disorder
Lead sponsor: King's College London
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2019-12-18
Enrollment: 662
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Observational model: OTHER
Time perspective: CROSS_SECTIONAL
Sampling method: NON_PROBABILITY_SAMPLE
Study population: People seeking help from their MP over study collection period

Brief summary: This is an observational study to assess the prevalence of common mental disorders and alcohol use disorders in a population of individuals seeking help from their Member of Parliament (MP) in the UK.

Detailed description: Members of Parliament (MP) in the United Kingdom (UK) represent the interests of their constituents. Constituents may contact their MP for assistance if they feel that they have been treated unfairly by a government department or agency, have concerns relating to their local area, or are wanting support from their MP for a campaign they are involved in. In order to fulfil their duty to constituents, MPs hold regular surgeries which allow anyone with a concern to meet with them to discuss the issue in question further. Given the role of the MP in representing people who may be in the midst of stressful events, such as a dispute, it is possible that mental health problems may be more prevalent in this population. However, at present MPs are not given any additional training in recognising mental distress, and may not know how to appropriately sign-post people to appropriate supportive services, nor do MPs receive advice in supporting such individuals. To the best of the investigator's knowledge, there have been no prior studies in this area. The findings of this study will inform initiatives to improve MP working practices, to and raise awareness of the mental health challenges faced by their constituents, with the aim of better meeting the mental health needs of constituents who attend MP surgeries in the future.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Attending selected MP surgeries (e.g. in Central Suffolk \& North Ipswich)
* Over the age of 18
* Must be able to complete paper or online questionnaires.
* Have consented to take part in the study

Exclusion Criteria:

- Unable to complete questionnaires on their own/ unaided.

Primary outcomes:
measure: Presence of common mental disorders indicated by scores above validated cutpoints on the GHQ-12
timeFrame: Cross-sectional analysis, data was collected from September 2018, with exposures and outcomes collected at the same time points (ie. when people fill out the questionnaire). Time frame for analysis will be through to study completion.
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Presence of alcohol use disorders, indicated by scores above validated cutpoints on the WHO AUDIT tool
timeFrame: Cross-sectional analysis, data was collected from September 2018, with exposures and outcomes collected at the same time points (ie. when people fill out the questionnaire). Time frame for analysis will be through to study completion.
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: London
country: United Kingdom
facility: IoPPN, King's College London
Study officials:
References: