Forms of Care (Version 2.0)
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Not Intervening as a form of care: an ethnographic study of palliative care
IRAS ID
239197
Contact name
Simon Cohn
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
This project will investigate an important feature of medicine - that of actively not doing something, in contrast to the common assumption that good and appropriate medicine is always about acting and intervening. It will draw on social science methods to explore this topic with a specific focus on palliative care.\n\nAlthough often side-lined within official versions of medical practice, and underrepresented in much social science literature, instances when staff choose not to do something, such as withdraw medications or halt other interventions, are a regular feature of medical work. Contrary to perceptions that these acts of not doing are, by definition, forms of clinical neglect, we will explore in what ways these routine practices of non-intervention are nevertheless an active and valuable form of care.\n\nIn order to investigate this, the study will draw on first-hand qualitative research and compile detailed case studies of palliative care in a large NHS hospital and its neighbouring community services. Data collection will involve charting the daily routines of staff members, conducting interviews, and compiling a small number of cases studies drawn from interviews with patients and those close to them. We will research these practices and the role they play - from specific clinical events to broader features of patient services. \n\nBy studying the delivery of palliative care, the project will explore how, and in what ways, practices of non-intervention are part of medical care. This includes whether there are tensions, including with patients’ and relatives’ hopes and expectations.\n
REC name
London - Camden & Kings Cross Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
18/LO/0871
Date of REC Opinion
5 Sep 2018
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion