Headstart – a new diagnostic test for Acute Exacerbation of COPD
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Headstart – a new diagnostic test for Acute Exacerbation of COPD: Drafting the care pathways, developing the decision model, and eliciting expert opinion to quantify the decision model’s parameters
IRAS ID
204819
Contact name
Sara Graziadio
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 3 months, 27 days
Research summary
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the second most common cause of emergency admissions in the UK. Currently, individuals with COPD need to monitor their health at home and either access emergency services or call their GP when symptoms get worse (exacerbations) or take rescue pack medications. Exacerbation symptoms are often non clear. When symptoms worsen, many patients go directly to A&E while others wait before taking action, increasing the likelihood of an eventual A&E visit.
The company MOLOGIC LTD developed a home urine test for COPD patients to inform them if an exacerbation is going to happen or not, called HeadStart. While the company will assess how well the test works, our team will investigate the current pathway of the typical COPD patient who suspects that an exacerbation event is occurring through interviewing clinicians of primary and secondary care, community services and the service development manager of the British Lung Foundation. We are planning to discuss the test and its implication also with patients through the British Lung Foundation. We will, then, model what would happen if HeadStart was used by the patients, and how the pathway of care may change.
The Academic Health Science Network for North East and North Cumbria (AHSN-NENC), will identify the professionals to be interviewed. Interviewees will receive via email an information sheet. If they agree to participate, they will receive a consent form, the provisional care pathway and the issues to be discussed. The interviews will last around 2 hours and audio recorded, if consented. If, during the analysis, it emerged that different experts have divergent opinions, they will be contacted again for clarifications. If, during the interview, it emerged that the participants have access to some of the data useful for the economic model, they will be contacted again via email.REC name
N/A
REC reference
N/A