Housing interventions
Investigator
Frances Heywood, University of Bristol
Background
With the focus on both the cost benefits, and the impact upon health and wellbeing, of interventions in the home environment of older people, the core group was quickly expanded to include a health economist and senior representatives from a primary care trust and a national Government department.
Aims and objectives
To further widen the methodological expertise and interdisciplinary repertoire there was a major consultative event in April which attracted a range of academic, and non-academic, stakeholders and experts from across the fields of health care, medicine, environmental sciences and engineering, as well as from organisations for older service users.
Important outcomes included
confirmation of the need for a fundamental evidence base on the housing/health linkage
identification of many additional elements on how older people manage their housing environment
a commitment from some group members to sustained involvement in the project
a major review of the methodology and design of the research
Policy implications
The continued involvement of home improvement providers ensured that the design was rooted in practice and could be rapidly implemented.
Result
Unfortunately, this project was not funded by the NDA.