Participant Information Sheet 
 

You are being invited to take part in a research project. Before you decide, it is important for you to understand why the project is being done and what it will involve. Please take time to read the following information carefully and discuss it with others if you wish. Ask us if there is anything that is not clear or if you would like more information. Take time to decide whether you wish to take part.  
 

Why is the project being conducted? 

Many people live with Type 2 Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease, or both conditions at the same time and can often feel that their healthcare does not fully meet their needs.  

This study aims to better understand whether people living with these conditions feel the support they receive matches their needs, and how this relates to their quality of life and their ability to manage their health. The findings of this project may help to improve future care in those living with long-term conditions. This is a student-led project which will be conducted for the purposes of completing a dissertation for an MSc programme and to be published in a peer-reviewed journal for a doctoral programme. PLEASE NOTE: This is a questionnaire-only study; no medical advice or assessment will be provided 
 

Why have I been invited to take part?  

You have been identified as a potential participant because you responded to an online recruitment post within an online community/forum you are a part of. We asked if we could share a recruitment post about our research within your community as we anticipated people in your community may be living with Type 2 Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease or both conditions together.  

You should only take part in the survey if the following conditions apply to you: 

Aged 18 or older 

Living with Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease or both conditions. 

UK Resident 

Sufficient level of English Language to complete a survey 

We have chosen the above criteria as the research focuses specifically on adults living with Type 2 Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease or both conditions. The research is examining Healthcare in the UK specifically therefore inclusion of other countries may impact on the research findings. We are aiming to recruit 600 participants for this project. 
 

Do I have to take part?  

No. It is up to you to decide whether to take part. You can ask questions about the project before deciding. You can stop being part of the project at any time, without giving a reason. You may withdraw from the project by pressing the ‘Exit’ button or closing the browser prior to submission. You cannot withdraw from the project after submission, this is due to all information you submit in the survey being anonymous and it not being possible to identify you. 

 

What will happen to me if I take part? 

You will need to read the entirety of this information sheet, so you are adequately informed about the research you are taking part in. You will be asked to provide your consent via the consent confirmation on the next page. You will then be asked to complete an online survey which will take approximately 15 to 25 minutes of your time and can be completed wherever you choose to complete it. 

Upon completion of the survey, you will be debriefed on your participation in the research. The debrief will explain what has happened, what will happen and contain signposting information to some relevant support services.  

You will then be asked if you would like to enter an optional prize draw by providing your email address. Entry into the prize draw is completely voluntary and the email address provided will not be linked to the information you provide in the survey. Your email address will only be used to inform you about the outcome of the prize draw which will take place in August 2026, following this all email addresses will be destroyed. Providing your email address does not link your survey answers to your email address, the email addresses are stored separately to the questionnaire answers. Providing in your email address does not change the participation in the survey in anyway. 

You can withdraw from the study at any point by stopping and exiting the survey, without giving a reason, and without negative consequences. Immediately upon survey submission, responses are automatically anonymised and cannot be linked to an individual participant. As a result, it will not be possible to identify or remove your responses after submission. 
 

What the activity/activities will involve: 

The questionnaire will be conducted online (using your phone, tablet, laptop or PC) and includes questions that will ask you about your health conditions, healthcare support you have received, what support you would like to receive, how your health affects you generally, how able you feel to manage your condition, how your health condition affects you psychologically, your understanding of your condition, health information you receive, your quality of life and sociodemographic questions. The topics included might be considered sensitive. With this in mind, please consider your privacy when completing the questionnaire so that nobody can oversee your answers. You can quickly navigate away from the questionnaire by closing the web browser you are using.  
 

Are there any possible disadvantages or risks in taking part? 

Taking part in this study is considered low risk and similar to completing other health-related questionnaires. Some of the questions ask about your health, how you manage your condition, how supported you feel by healthcare services and how your condition impacts on you psychologically. It does not ask about trauma. Thinking about these topics may cause some temporary emotional discomfort as it may bring attention to some current challenges or difficult feelings. You do not have to answer any questions that make you uncomfortable. You can skip questions or stop taking part at any time before submitting the survey, without giving a reason and without any negative consequences. The survey does not include any medical tests, diagnoses, or assessments, and you will not receive any personal feedback based on your answer. If taking part raises any concerns or emotional discomfort, information about free and accessible support services can be found at the bottom of this page and will be provided to you at the end of the survey. If you feel distressed at any point, you are encouraged to seek support from one of the services provided or speak with your healthcare provider (GP, or T2D or CVD care team). There is a very small risk of being identified indirectly from your participation in the study, to minimise this risk all data collected will be anonymous. 
 

Are there any benefits in taking part? 

While there are no immediate benefits for taking part in this research project, it is hoped that it will lead to an improved understanding of how healthcare support matches up with the needs of people living with Type 2 Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease and both conditions together, and how this relates to peoples quality of life and ability to manage their conditions. This could inform future research and support the development of more person centered and joined up care for people living with these conditions. 

If you chose to provide your email address for entry in the random prize draw (held in Aug 26), your email address will be stored separately from questionnaire data and will be destroyed once the draw is drawn. Only the two winners of the prize draw will receive correspondence from us, during Aug 26 to provide details of their prize. 
 

What if we find something unexpected? 

The project is not a clinical or personal assessment, and the investigators are not appropriately qualified to provide meaningful individual assessments.  Once data is submitted it is anonymised, meaning that we can’t link specific answers back to any individual. We are therefore not able to provide personal feedback on the questions answered. 
 

What personal data will be collected and what will happen to this? 

The information you give us, or that we collect from you, from which you can be identified (e.g. from identifiers such as your name, date of birth, audio recording etc.), is known as personal data. The project will not involve the collection of your personal data unless you provide us with your contact details for entry into the prize draw. 
 

Will the project be published? Could I be identified from any publications or other outputs? 

The findings from this study will be published in an academic journal and will also be included in a Master’s dissertation (level 7) and a Professional Doctorate portfolio (Level 8). These documents may be stored in the Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) online archive and may be publicly accessible. No names or direct identifying details will be published. All information collected in this study will be anonymised.  

Our reports will be written in a way that so not to be able to identify individuals who took part in the project. Data on personal characteristics will be summarised across the whole participant sample.  

The raw data file, containing all the results of the participants will be published as an anonymised data set in a open research data repository (such as LJMU data repository or the UK Data Service. This means that the raw anonymised data, can be made available for future reuse. Sharing this data increases the transparency, reproducibility, and reach of our research and is considered good practice.  
 

Data Protection  

Liverpool John Moores University is the data controller with respect to your personal data and as such will determine how your personal data is used in the project. The University will process your personal data for the purpose of the project outlined above. Research/evaluation is a task that is performed in the public interest. Further information about your rights with respect to your personal data is available from the LJMU Privacy Notice for Research Participants (https://www.ljmu.ac.uk/legal/privacy-notice-and-cookies/external-stakeholders-privacy-policy/research-participants-privacy-notice). The LJMU Data Protection Officer can be contacted via email: DPO@ljmu.ac.uk 
 

Who has reviewed this project? 

This Project has received a favourable ethics opinion from an LJMU Research Ethics Committee. 

Research Ethics Committee Reference Number: 260122LJMUREC313

Who is funding the project? 

This project is not funded. 
 

Whom do I contact if I have a concern about the project or I wish to complain? 

If you have a concern about any aspect of this project, please contact Professor Newson, lead supervisor for this project:  l.m.newson@ljmu.ac.uk, and we will do our best to answer your query.  You should expect a reply within 10 working days.  If you remain unhappy or wish to make a formal complaint, please contact the Chair of the Research Ethics Committee at Liverpool John Moores University who will seek to resolve the matter as soon as possible: 

Chair, Liverpool John Moores University Research Ethics Committee; Email: FullReviewUREC@ljmu.ac.uk; Tel: 0151 231 2121; Research Innovation Services, Liverpool John Moores University, Exchange Station, Liverpool L2 2QP 

Payments, reimbursements of expenses or any other benefit or incentive for taking part 

You will have the option to provide your email address to opt-in to a prize draw to win 1 of 2 £50 Amazon voucher. The probability of winning will be approximately 1 in 300 dependent upon participant numbers. The draw will take place in August 2026 and the winners notified using the email address provided. Your email address will not be recorded with the survey data collected from you, they will be separate. After the draw has been completed, all email addresses will be destroyed.