Older people and carers' experiences of 'Hospital-at-home'
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Older people and their unpaid carers' experiences of 'Hospital-at-home'
IRAS ID
299850
Contact name
Denise Tanner
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Birmingham
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
The goal of the study is to learn about the perspectives of older people who receive hospital at home (HAH), their unpaid carers who are involved in their relatives' HAH, and health and social care workers who provide HAH, as well as the challenges and opportunities for effective collaboration between social care and health care workers.
There is an important theme in older people acquiring associated health infections and increased Delirium if they spend too long in an acute hospital setting. A recent study by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) in 2021 shows that caring for groups of vulnerable or older people at home improves their outcomes, reducing the pressures faced in emergency departments and on acute hospital wards (NIHR, 2021). Hospital at home provides an alternative to hospital admission for older people, and it's important we explore the experiences of older people accessing it and the impact on unpaid carers and the professionals delivering it in greater detail.
It will involve 65 participants taking part in an individual interview (60 minutes) with the researcher to talk about their experiences of hospital at home. The recruitment of participants will take place at the point of triage by health professionals at the Lyng Centre where the hospital at home team is based. The potential benefits of the study will include a better understanding of how hospital at home impacts older people, their unpaid carers, and health and social care professionals delivering the service. This is an ARC-funded Ph.D.
REC name
North West - Greater Manchester South Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
22/NW/0084
Date of REC Opinion
14 Mar 2022
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion