Emergency admissions for those with frailty
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Understanding emergency presentations and admissions to hospital towards the end of life for people with frailty
IRAS ID
325086
Contact name
Nicola Williams
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Open University
Duration of Study in the UK
5 years, 3 months, 28 days
Research summary
The ageing population has led to an increase in frailty. Those with frailty have an increased risk of hospital -acquired infection; deconditioning; falls; malnutrition and adverse effects along with an increase in mortality. They are more likely to be readmitted within 30 days of discharge and are more likely to have multiple admission within a year. This project aims to understand the reasoning behind their decision to attend hospital and their experiences of the subsequent inpatient stay to determine how being identified as frail influences these decisions and the experience.
Patient participants will be those who are over 65 years, identified as frail according to the Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS) with a score of 7 or over and who have attended A&E as an emergency admission.
It will be conducted within Worthing Hospital, part of University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust. I will be using an ethnographic approach which will include a combination of observations of staff and patient participants within the hospital as well as semi- structured and unstructured interviews with all participants. Patient participants will also be approached four weeks after the initial interview for a follow up at their place of residence if they consent. Observations will be carried out in the Accident and Emergency Department, the Emergency floor and some main hospital wards. In addition observations may include the discharge planning team and the frailty team. The outcome of these observations and interviews will be recorded in written fieldnotes and some may also be audio recorded.
By observing all aspects of the healthcare journey from attendance at A&E up to and including discharge it is hoped that the research will provide a deeper understanding of how frailty influences the experience of those living with frailty and the interactions with healthcare staff during this time.
REC name
London - West London & GTAC Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
24/PR/0490
Date of REC Opinion
31 May 2024
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion