FEARLESS_ICU v1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Fostering tEAmwork for ResiLiEnt Staff and Safe care: driving post-pandemic recovery and renewal in Intensive Care Units.
IRAS ID
335535
Contact name
Andreas Xyrichis
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
King's College London
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
NCT06389773, clinicaltrials.gov identifier
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 2 months, 31 days
Research summary
Healthcare staff in intensive care units (ICUs) face increasing pressure. The COVID-19 pandemic added more anxiety to overworked staff, with extra demands for more flexible and cross-boundary working. Continued exposure to such working conditions place staff at high risk of ill health, leading many to consider leaving the NHS. However, ICU staff have also shown remarkable resilience to these challenges through camaraderie and teamwork. High levels of teamwork have long been shown to have a protective effect to both staff and patients. ICU research links teamwork to better outcomes for patients, including reduced mortality; higher family satisfaction; and improved staff wellbeing. Yet with ICUs remaining busy due to the inevitable backlog and ongoing viral outbursts of COVID-19, there are increasing signs, such as from the NHS staff survey, that these high levels of teamwork are waning. This research focus on current teamwork practice in ICUs across the UK to understand the factors that influence teamworking in the post-pandemic context and to develop interventions to strengthen teamworking practices.
This research aims to understand what teamwork looks like in ICUs and how teamwork affects staff experiences. This understanding will help to develop a toolkit to strengthen teamworking practices which will improve staff wellbeing and patient outcomes.
This research will take place in a minimum of five ICUs across the UK. The ICUs will represent those with various NHS Staff Survey scores on teamwork, unit size and CQC rating, geographic demographic diversity, and opportunity. Researchers will observe the everyday work of various healthcare professionals in ICUs, including team huddles and ward rounds, and will recruit staff members to shadow. They will also hold interviews with staff members. The study will last around 15 months, with 7-8 weeks of observations and interviews per site. This study is funded by the NIHR.REC name
Yorkshire & The Humber - Leeds West Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
24/YH/0201
Date of REC Opinion
19 Sep 2024
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion