Implementing the Mental Capacity Act in practice

The research funded will be intended to improve outcomes for people who use services and their supporters, health and social care professionals’ practice, the quality and accessibility of services, and the provision of evidence for decision makers. Whilst there is different legislation in place across nations of the UK (The Mental Capacity Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 and the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000), cross-UK exploration would be welcome.

This funding call welcomes applicants from as broad a range of backgrounds and expertise as possible, including (but not limited to) applied health research, mental health, social work, social care, legal and ethics, philosophy and social sciences. Studies will use a variety of methods which must all be clearly explained and justified, most likely based on a mixed methods approach. There should be a focus on lived experience of people using services, their families, their informal support networks and staff. The following areas of interest are examples of the type of research areas in scope for this call:

• Overview and evaluation (including accuracy, reliability, usability and acceptability) of tools currently used by health and social care professionals to support decision-making and assess mental capacity.
• Identification of barriers and facilitators to conducting MCA-compliant assessments of mental capacity, and how these can be overcome.
• Evaluation of training and educational interventions to improve staff knowledge, confidence and consistency in supporting decision making, conducting MCA assessments and best interest decisions. This will include looking at issues identified by staff as development gaps, such as dealing with ‘undue influence’.
• Identification and evaluation of the components of an effective assessment of mental capacity to improve consistency in delivery and outcomes of capacity assessments, and to facilitate collaborative multi-disciplinary working.
• Understanding the risks and impact of cultural bias, as well as identifying barriers and enablers to consideration of cultural, ethnic and religious factors in supporting implementation of decision-making and assessments.
• Evaluation of how the Mental Capacity Act has been embedded (or not) in organisations and practice and the impact on, and experiences of, people using services and their carers.
• Exploration of differences and commonalities in decision-making and assessments carried out by different professionals and in different contexts, from mental health settings to community and home assessments, and how this understanding can be used to improve practice.
• Effectiveness of multi-agency working within application of the MCA and understanding how this operates across different health and social care settings.

Further details are set out on the NIHR’s website at

https://www.nihr.ac.uk/funding/2211-implementing-the-mental-capacity-act-in-practice-mental-capacity-assessments/29741