Hospital discharge barriers for people with LD and/or ASD. Version 2
Research type
Research Study
Full title
‘When can I go home?’. Barriers to hospital discharge for adults with Learning disabilities and/or Autism diagnosis in the UK, from the perspective of their relatives and carers.
IRAS ID
357078
Contact name
Amy Crumpton
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
SWBH
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 11 months, 31 days
Research summary
Adults who have a diagnosis of learning disabilities (LD) and/ or Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience significant health inequalities throughout their lives. An area which remains particularly under researched is this group’s experience of delayed hospital discharge and an understanding of the barriers which create these delays. With the current gaps in research, the risk of harm to patients with ASD and LD associated to long stays in hospital remains high.
The research question being adressed in this study is 'What are the perceived and actual barriers for people with Learning disabilities and/ or Autism being discharged from hospital?'
The aim is to produce recommendations from the research towards local guidelines for improved quality and safety of hospital discharge for adults with LD/and or ASD, which might also contribute to the current national understanding of best practice.
Carers or relatives of patients with LD and/or ASD who have been discharged from hospital over the last 12 months will be approached to participate in interviews on their relatives experiences. Data will be reviewed together with the hospital data of recorded delay reasons to allow for a comparison of themes.
The interviews will be completed in the relatives or carers own home or booked hospital rooms. Participants will be able to select. The length of study will be approximately four months. Consenting participants involvement will be limited to a single semi structured interview lasting no more than two hours. Questions asked will be around what they believe contributed to delays in hospital discharge for their next of kin with LD/ and or ASD. These questions will be shared with relatives/carers in advance of the interview to allow for processing and preparation of accounts of events. They will be attached to the participant information sheet.
REC name
North West - Greater Manchester Central Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
25/NW/0235
Date of REC Opinion
28 Jul 2025
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion