Baker, Paul
Coole, Carol
Drummond, Avril
McDaid, Catriona
Khan, Sayeed
Thomson, Louise
Hewitt, Catherine
McNamara, Iain
McDonald, David
Fitch, Judith
Rangan, Amar
Funding for this research was provided by:
Health Technology Assessment Programme (15/28/02)
Article History
Received: 12 May 2017
Accepted: 27 May 2018
First Online: 28 June 2018
Ethics approval and consent to participate
: The OPAL study was approved by the Health Research Authority’s East Midlands – Derby research ethics committee (Reference 16/EM/0341; Date of approval 18/08/2016). The employer interview elements of the OPAL study were approved by the ethics committee of Nottingham University (Reference L12072016 2,016,013; Date of approval 25/07/2016). The OPAL study was adopted on to the NIHR Portfolio on 16/10/2016 (CPMS identifier: 32609). The study is sponsored by the South Tees hospitals NHS foundation trust.All study participants underwent informed consented prior to participation. All patient participants underwent written informed consent. Other stakeholders (Employers, Surgeons, General Practitioners, Allied Health professionals and nurses) that were interviewed as part of the OPAL study underwent either written or verbal informed consent dependent upon the method of interview (in person interview versus telephone interview).
: The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
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