Rehabilitation Potential Of Older People Admitted To An Acute Hospital
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Rehabilitation Potential Of Older People Admitted To An Acute Hospital – Exploring The Decision Making Process Of Health Professionals
IRAS ID
171751
Contact name
Gemma Bradley
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
3 years, 3 months, 1 days
Research summary
The proposed research aims to develop a detailed understanding of some of the decisions that are made by health professionals, in collaboration with patients, following an unplanned admission to an acute hospital for older people. The specific decisions of interest include decisions relating to the extent to which the older person will improve through rehabilitation, and how this links to decisions about which services will meet needs. That is to say, health professionals are often requierd to make a judgement about whether someone has the ability to get better or return to their previous abilities following a hospital admission, and they subsequently need to identify services or pathways which enable this to happen or be most appropriate to meet needs.
It is proposed that this study will use principles of Ethnography; a particular research approach which places value on understanding issues in the natural context in which they occur. For this reason, it will use observation of health professional activities, and health professional interactions with patients to explore decision making processes. The research will also involve interviews with health professionals and patients.
The proposed study will particularly focus on the decision making of Occupational Therapists and Physiotherapists as these professional groups are frequently involved in the decisions outlined above, but are under-represented in current literature. It will be conducted as part of a PhD programme of study.
The ideas for this research emerged from a lack of clarity about what is meant by 'rehabilitation potential' (a term used in literature and by health professionals in their practice but not fully understood), alongside a desire to understand the influences on decisions from both a health professional and patient perspective at a time when understanding hospital admissions for older people, and a focus on shared decision making are both emphasised in policy.
REC name
North East - Newcastle & North Tyneside 1 Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/NE/0322
Date of REC Opinion
11 Nov 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion