PR staff training progress

Four members of the PR team at the first pilot intervention site have completed Day 2 of their training today and are ready to start recruitment of PR-buddies.

The PR staff training (which will be completed by staff in PR services randomised to the intervention arm of the trial) has been developed. This will prepare the PR staff to set up and run a PR-buddy service at their site.

There are three elements to the training for the PR staff. First, the staff at each of our intervention sites will complete a half day of self-directed learning. Day 2 will be a live session on Microsoft Teams delivered by the IMPROVE research team (we call this the ‘remote live’ element). Finally, on Day 3, the PR staff will complete a full day of in-person training (also delivered by the research team). Across the three days, the training covers a range of topics including the background and methodology behind the IMPROVE trial, keeping records, recruitment and selection of volunteers to train as PR-buddies, training of PR-buddies and the ongoing running of the PR-buddy service.

The training that has been completed so far has been a success and helped the PR staff to understand more about the trial. We expect the staff at this site to complete the final day of in-person training on the 21st of April. By the end of the training, the PR staff will be familiar with the training materials that we are providing for them which they will use deliver the PR-buddy training.

A different member of the IMPROVE research team to those who are facilitating the staff training will be completing interviews with the PR staff. This is so that we can get their feedback enabling us to refine and make any suggested changes to the PR staff training before we start the main trial later in the year.