£2.4 million project aims to help people with multiple long-term conditions stay well

Researchers have been awarded more than £2.4million to establish some of the common issues that exist for people living with more than one health condition – and to find solutions.

The CO-ACTION project brings together experts in nursing, allied health and medicine from four universities across the UK. They will work with some of the estimated 7million people living with multiple health conditions, as well as health and social care practitioners working to support them.

The five-year project, supported by funding from the National Institute for Health and Care Research, is being led by researchers at the University of Southampton working with colleagues at the University of Plymouth, the University of Manchester, and the University of Oxford.

In Plymouth, the project will involve members of the Community and Primary Care Research Group (CPCRG), NIHR ARC South West Peninsula (PenARC) and the Peninsula Clinical Trials Unit (PenCTU). It will draw upon knowledge gleaned from recent projects that sought to enhance care for individuals with complex needs who had recently left prison, or been diagnosed with dementia or psychosis, and their unpaid carers.

The CPCRG and PenARC specialises in developing complex interventions for underserved groups and works with the PenCTU to evaluate effects.

The CO-ACTION project is being launched at a time when the UK’s health and care system, the researchers say, is largely centred around treating one condition at a time.

That, combined with current care pressures, can compound the problems faced by people with multiple conditions, and lead to their social engagement, mobility and mental health and wellbeing being neglected.

To begin addressing that, the new project will see researchers in Plymouth – and their colleagues around the UK – working with patients, practitioners and community networks to explore the potential benefits and challenges of moving away from condition-specific care.

Among the possible solutions being considered would be to have a named person who they can work with to develop a shared understanding of problems, strengths, create an individualised plan and turn to for personalised support.

This idea will be tested in a UK-wide trial involving 500 people, including people from Plymouth, who have often been under-served by health and social care (for example, people from low income, ethnic minority, and non-English speaking groups).

If the approach works, the project team will explore how such an intervention can become a normal part of practice right across the country.