Providing insight into patients’ care needs using hospital datasets
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Providing clear insight into patients’ clinical and social care needs by a novel use of combined hospital datasets
IRAS ID
234429
Contact name
Christopher Farmer
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 3 months, 0 days
Research summary
The healthcare setting is becoming increasingly complicated, patients present to hospital with complex problems, the information load for each patient is increasing with increased use of observations and investigations and despite this hospital length of stay is generally reducing.
Increasing amounts of data are available to doctors, nurses and allied health professionals but often it is very difficult to appreciate the significance of data being presented either in terms of healthcare needs (e.g. escalation of care), prognosis and outcomes (length of stay and increased need for social care). Many of these outcomes can be estimated by combining data from clinical systems (bedside observations), blood test results, known illnesses and interventions such as operations.
As part of a service and quality improvement project we have combined these data streams for each individual patient and matched them against previous people treated under similar circumstances in order to give some insight into potential outcomes. This contextualised data will then be delivered to health professionals treating the patients at the point of care, via clinical alerting technology already in use at the Trust.
The key research question in this qualitative study is the impact on decision making, and perceived benefit to the clinical user of the presentation of this contextualised clinical data to the healthcare professional at the point of care.
REC name
North West - Greater Manchester South Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
17/NW/0619
Date of REC Opinion
7 Nov 2017
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion