The STARLIGHT Study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Developing a Green Sustainability Framework for NHS Elective Surgical Hubs: A Qualitative Study (The STARLIGHT Study)
IRAS ID
342066
Contact name
Anthony Chan
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 8 months, 0 days
Research summary
There are over 7 million patients in England on the waiting list for elective surgery. The Government have made it a priority to reduce waiting lists significantly by March 2024. One solution is to change smaller hospitals to efficiently treat more patients needing straightforward operations. These Elective Surgical Hubs (ESH) can treat up to 7,000 patients per year. There are currently 90 surgical hubs in England with another 50 planned next year.
The more patients being treated means a bigger impact on our environment. We know we must do more to protect the environment, but it is difficult to know exactly what impact the ESHs have on the environment. For example, the extra travel from hospital visits as more patients come to hospital appointments can result in more CO2 emissions. We have no standard way of measuring ‘environmental impact’ as each hospital measures impact in a different way, making any work aimed at reducing environmental impact difficult with different hospitals unable to share good practice.
We aim to solve this problem by analysing patient pathways from beginning to end to see exactly what patients goes through when they have surgery at our ESH at Trafford General Hospital. We can then develop common ‘performance indicators’ of sustainability that ESHs can use to improve their practice with regards to the environment. To do this, it is crucial to explore the views of patients, doctors and nurses, and hospital managers on how they want to tackle the environmental impact of surgical hubs, and what things are important to them. Importantly, we do not want to disadvantage any patient group, so we need to know that what we measure for potential change does not disadvantage them further. This study (STARLIGHT) explores these views by way of detailed interviews of both patients and healthcare professionals.
REC name
Yorkshire & The Humber - Leeds West Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
24/YH/0148
Date of REC Opinion
29 Jul 2024
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion