0%

Title of Project: The Quality of Life in People with Atopic Dermatitis; Examining Eczema Severity Differences in Sleep Quality, Stress, Wellbeing, and Resilience and The Extent to Which These Factors Act as Predictors.
 
Researcher: Sophie Neugebauer
Supervisor: Dr Alexandra Seddon, Prof Helen Poole
 
You are being invited to take part in a research study. Before you decide it is important that you understand why the research is being done and what it involves. Please take time to read the following information. Ask us if there is anything that is not clear or if you would like more information. Take time to decide if you want to take part or not.
 
1. What is the purpose of the study?
The purpose of this study is to see if there is a relationship between quality of life and eczema. Resilience, severity of eczema, sleep quality, stress, and wellbeing will also be investigated to see if there is an effect between these and the quality of life in people with eczema. This is important because there are several mental health issues experienced by people with eczema, therefore identifying these issues can be beneficial in improving treatment. 

2. Who can take part?
Anybody above the age of 18 years of age, who has access to the internet and has eczema may take place in this research.

3. Do I have to take part?
No. It is up to you to decide whether or not to take part. If you do you will be given this information sheet and implied consent, which is given by completing the questionnaire. You are still free to withdraw at any time and without giving a reason by simply closing the browser. Please note that once your data has been submitted, it can no longer be withdrawn as all data is anonymous. A decision to withdraw will not affect your rights.
 
4. What will happen to me if I take part?
Firstly, you will be asked to complete the Dermatology Life Quality Index, which measures how much your skin problem has affected your life over the last week and asks questions such as “over the last week, how embarrassed or self-conscious have you been because of your skin?” and “over the last week, how much has your skin affected any social or leisure activities?”. Next, you will be asked to answer the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, in which you will be asked questions such as “during the past month, how often have you had trouble staying awake while driving, eating meals, or engaging in social activity?”. Next, your stress will be measured by completion of the Perceived Stress Scale, which asks questions such as “in the last month, how often have you felt that you were unable to control the important things in your life?” and “in the last month, how often have you felt that you were on top of things?”. Wellbeing will be measured using the WHO-5 well-being index, which asks questions such as “I have felt cheerful and in good spirits” and “I woke up feeling fresh and rested”. The Brief Resilience Scale will be used to measure resilience, and it consists of statements like “I tend to bounce back quickly after hard times” and “it does not take me long to recover from a stressful event”, from which responses must be “strongly agree”, “agree”, “neutral”, “disagree”, or “strongly disagree”. Finally, the severity of eczema will be measured using the Eczema Area and Severity Index, the guideline in this scale covers erythema (redness), edema/papulation (swelling), excoriation (evidence of scratching), and lichenification (thickening). Each of these will lead to a final intensity of score of either clear, almost clear, mild, moderate, severe, or very severe.
 
5. Are there any risks / benefits involved?
There are few risks associated with taking part in the study, such as the questions about severity of eczema, stress, and wellbeing potentially being overwhelming. Examples of the questions which will appear have been quoted in section 3 of this information sheet for participants to decide if they wish to carry on in the study. If you are experiencing any difficulties, please find the contact details of the National Eczema Society and LJMU Health and Wellbeing below for more information. There are no intended benefits associated with taking part; however, the findings may help the researcher in determining the factors which impact the quality of life in people with eczema.
 
6. Will my taking part in the study be kept confidential?
Any information you provide will be kept strictly confidential. You do not have to provide a name on any questionnaires or information sheets and therefore the information you provide cannot be identified with your name.
 
7. Has this study been approved by an ethics committee?
LJMU Psychology Research Ethics Panel has assessed the research study and approved it.
 
8. Who to contact with enquires about this study?
Sophie Neugebauer, MSc Health Psychology, School of Psychology, Faculty of Health. Email: S.Neugebauer@2019.ljmu.ac.uk.
Dr Alexandra Seddon, Lecturer, School of Psychology, Faculty of Health. Email: A.L.Seddon@ljmu.ac.uk.
Prof Helen Poole, School of Psychology, Faculty of Health. Email: H.M.Poole@ljmu.ac.uk
 
Data Protection Notice
The data controller for this study will be Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU). The LJMU Data Protection Office provides oversight of LJMU activities involving the processing of personal data, and can be contacted at secretariat@ljmu.ac.uk. This means that we are responsible for looking after your information and using it properly. LJMU’s Data Protection Officer can also be contacted at secretariat@ljmu.ac.uk. The University will process your personal data for the purpose of research.  Research is a task that we perform in the public interest.
 
Your rights to access, change or move your information are limited, as we need to manage your information in specific ways in order for the research to be reliable and accurate. If you withdraw from the study, we will keep the information about you that we have already obtained. You can find out more about how we use your information by contacting secretariat@ljmu.ac.uk.
 
If you are concerned about how your personal data is being processed, please contact LJMU in the first instance at secretariat@ljmu.ac.uk. If you remain unsatisfied, you may wish to contact the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). Contact details, and details of data subject rights, are available on the ICO website at: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/data-protection-reform/overview-of-the-gdpr/individuals-rights/
 
Thank you for reading this information sheet and for considering taking part in this study.