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PALS evaluations

  • Last modified date:
    8 February 2007

This page contains details of some of the current and past evaluations of the service.

Evaluation of Patient Advice and Liaison Services (PALS)

Duration of study: January 2005-January 2007

Researchers: David Evans, Norma Daykin, Susan Weil, Jane Powell,   Pat Taylor

Faculty of Health and Social Care, UWE Bristol.

Evaluation of PALS in England commissioned by the Department of Health.

Aims of the study:

The overarching purpose of this evaluation is to assess the extent to which PALS are contributing to a change in NHS culture that places patients and other service users at the heart of service planning, delivery and improvement. Thus the patient and user perspective will be a key element of this evaluation.

The evaluation will use mixed research methods within an overall realistic evaluation framework, including a national mapping exercise and audit, action inquiry, cost consequence analysis and case studies.

National survey of Patient Advice and Liaison Services (PALS) in England: children, young people and parents' access to and use of PALS

Duration of study: January 2003- June 2005

Researchers: Janet Heaton and Patricia Sloper -Social Policy Research Unit, The University of York

The Community Fund and the Department of Health fund this research. It is being carried out in collaboration with Carnegie Young People's Initiative.

Aims of the study:

  • To establish whether and, if so, how children's, young people's and parents' access to and use of PALS has been promoted by the service to date
  • To examine how PALS can facilitate children's, young people's and parents' access to and use of the service
  • To provide guidelines for NHS Trusts and Primary Care Trusts on how PALS can be developed in ways which are more inclusive of children, young people and their parents.

Further information is available from York University website's Social Policy Research Unit pages, or email Janet Heaton or Tricia Sloper at the addresses below.

Learning the lessons from PALS: An evaluation of the London Patient Advice and Liaison Services

Duration of study: April 2002-June 2004

Lead researcher: Professor Julienne Meyer, School of Nursing and Midwifery, City University, London.

Aims of the study

  • To share the lessons learnt from setting up PALS.
  • To collaboratively develop with key stakeholders (service users and carers, their representatives, PALS providers and the LRO Quality Task Force) a set of success criteria by which to assess the London PALS.

This study is based around qualitative evaluation of six case study PALS from a range of NHS settings across London and on observation of and feedback to all PALS network meetings in the five London sectors. It also involves consultation with direct PALS users as well as user and carer representative organisations.

Further information is available from the Learning the Lesson from PALS pages on the Queen Mary's School of Medicine and Dentistry website, or the email address below.

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