Experiences of Supporting a Partner through Heart Transplant
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Experiences of Supporting a Partner through Heart Transplant
IRAS ID
217227
Contact name
Jessica Morley
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Lancaster University
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
N/A, N/A
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 1 months, 1 days
Research summary
This study will be researching partners’ experiences of supporting someone through heart transplant. For most transplant recipients, the journey through transplant involves the support of their close relatives. The social support given by partners/ family members has been related to the subsequent health and well-being of the transplant recipient and to the overall success of the transplantation. Although the support given by partners is invaluable, studies show that a lot of partners feel unprepared to fulfil this role and often experience high levels of burn-out, stress and depression. There is some emerging evidence to suggest that those supporting a person through a life-threatening illness can be positively transformed by the event in the long term, however the relatively small number of studies in this area gives rise to the need for further exploratory research. The current study will recruit partners of heart transplant recipients. Participants will be asked to complete a semi-structured interview lasting approximately one hour which will take place in a room at the Transplant Unit, at their home or via telephone/ skype. The results of this research will be useful in increasing understanding of how partners specifically describe their experiences of supporting their loved one through heart transplant and could also potentially be helpful in understanding how they could be best supported through this process. The study will be funded by Lancaster University.
REC name
North West - Preston Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
17/NW/0134
Date of REC Opinion
7 Mar 2017
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion