Occupational Health Service
Education Centre
St Thomas’ Hospital
Westminster Bridge Road
London SE1 7EH
Dear Doctor
Your patient ______________________
Date of birth ________________________
Has agreed to participate in a research study, the details of which are described
below. If you have any queries please contact [add name and contact details of trial
manager].
Participant Information Sheet
The SCIN (Skin Care Intervention in Nurses) Trial
Background
You are being invited to take part in a research project. Here is some information to help you decide
whether or not to take part. Please take time to read the following information carefully and ask us
if there is anything you do not understand or if you would like more information. Take time to
decide whether or not you wish to take part. Thank you for reading this.
What is the purpose of the study?
To prevent infections spreading between patients, nurses have to wear gloves and wash their
hands a lot of the time. This constant battering of the hands with wash products and water means
that nurses often develop hand dermatitis (eczema), which in turn may mean that they are more
likely to carry harmful bacteria on their hands. The risk of developing hand dermatitis is
particularly high in nurses with a past history of allergic disease such as hay fever, asthma and
eczema, and among those who work in intensive care units (ICUs) where hand washing has to be
more frequent.
We will be studying nurses at high risk of hand dermatitis, in particular those who work in ICUs and
student nurses who have a history of eczema, asthma or hay fever about to start their first clinical
placement. We will be testing the effectiveness of advice in hand care.
Why have I been chosen to participate?
40 trusts /health board across the United Kingdom (excluding south Wales) which have ICUs and
provide occupational health (OH) care of student nurses have agreed to participate in the study.
Your trust / health board is one of those, which is taking part. The study is funded by the National
Institute for Health Research and has received ethical approval. The research is being led by Guy’s
and St Thomas’ NHS foundation Trust but involves senior researchers and experts from King’s
College, London; the University of Southampton; Imperial college, London; University College
London; the University of Manchester and Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust
What does the study involve?
You will be requested to complete a total of three self-administered questionnaires: one at the start
of the trial, one after two weeks and a third at the end of the 12 month study period. Completed
questionnaires will be returned in the post to the SCIN research team based at Guy’s and St
Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust. In addition, you will be invited by your occupational health (OH)
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department to have your hands photographed. If you decide to withdraw from the study before the
end of the study period, you will be provided with an opportunity to complete a final short
questionnaire and invited to have your hands/wrist photographed. You will be given information
about hand dermatitis both orally and by a written leaflet. You may be given a tube of moisturising
cream together with information on how to use the cream. We encourage you to report any
symptoms of hand dermatitis early to your occupational health (OH) department so that the
dermatitis can be managed appropriately.
What are the risks and benefits of taking part?
There are no risks in participating in this study. Eventually this research will help us understand
how to prevent nurses developing hand dermatitis.
We will ask for your consent before we take photographs of your hands.
Will the information that I give be kept confidential?
Yes. Your name will not be on the questionnaires that you fill in and for security reasons all your
contact details will be kept separately from the questionnaire.
What happens if I do not wish to take part in the study?
It would be a great help to the study if you do participate, however, if you do not wish to take part
you may decline without having to give a reason and without being penalised in any way.
Where can I get further information on the study?
If you have any questions about the study please contact:
Trial Manager Vaughan Parsons Tel: 020 7188 7188 (ext 53678)
Email: Vaughan.parsons@kcl.ac.uk
Local OH Practitioner Tel:
Email:
At the end of the study the results will be available to all participants
What happens next?
If you are willing to participate in the study, we would be grateful if you could complete the
attached consent form and return it to your local OH practitioner at the following address: (internal
post address) or by email:
Alternatively your local OH practitioner will be contacting you in due course to establish if you are
willing to participate in the study, to answer any questions you may have and to take your written
consent to participate
Thank you very much for your help.
Dr Ira Madan MD FRCP FFOM
Consultant Occupational Physician
Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust
Chief Investigator
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