Table 3.
Impacts on research delivery
| Theme | Total across areas n | Research ethics n | Research governance n | Information Governance n | Key quotations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delays | 300 | 121 | 110 | 69 | There are delays to research even though there is no flexibility on funding (RE) |
|
Deters, restricts or changes research, innovation/ collaboration |
73 | 46 | 21 | 6 | We have avoided setting up studies, compromised on our sampling strategies and generally been discouraged. The general feeling is that HRA should be avoided if possible (RG) |
| Workload/ difficulty/ waste | 75 | 26 | 34 | 15 | Major administrative burden (IG) |
| Reduced quality | 30 | 18 | - | 12 | Perhaps the most pernicious impact is the fact that every time you want to change a sentence on a leaflet you have to go through an amendment, which is more paperwork and more delays. It basically means that you don’t bother changing things even if it would improve the study/recruitment/participant experience and the research is of lower quality as a result (RE) |
| Research delivery/ performance | 30 | 17 | - | 13 | My funding ran out while I was waiting for the data to arrive, so now I cannot do anything with it. (IG) |
| Staff stress/ morale | 34 | 15 | 14 | 5 | Massive, catastrophic: it now takes up more time than the research itself sapping the will to live let alone motivation to undertake research. (RE) |
| Increased costs | 20 | 12 | - | 8 | The main impact is to raise the cost of the work, as researcher time is invested in negotiating a byzantine process of form-filling with significant invisible costs which are, inevitably, borne by the research funders (RE) |
| Planning burden/uncertainty | 8 | 8 | - | - | Timelines unknown so can’t progress things and indicate to sites when amendments will be rolled out as unknown when approvals will be received (RE) |
| System problems | 7 | 7 | - | - | Complications when submitting initial application and any subsequent amendments as comments from more than one committee can be baffling (RE) |
| Inability to inform policy with timely evidence | 8 | - | - | 8 | Massive, massive delays …. consequently, investment decisions continue to be made, without any information about effectiveness. (IG) |
Abbreviations: RE - Research Ethics, RG – Research Governance, IG - Information Governance.