Observational study describing the culture of hospital visiting time.
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Developing an understanding of the culture of visiting time to identify opportunities for reducing the risk of healthcare-associated infection in the older people’s ward of an acute hospital.
IRAS ID
133607
Contact name
Robert McMorran
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Poole Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Research summary
What can an understanding of the culture of visiting time do to reduce the risk of infection in the older peoples’ ward of an acute hospital?
The prevention and control of infection plays an important role in patient comfort and well being and is an important feature of high quality care. Most of the work undertaken in hospitals in this respect is focused on the behaviour and clinical practice of healthcare staff. However, certain rules are also applied to visitors such as cleaning hands and not sitting on beds. These visiting rules are based on, and limited to, assumptions about what visitors might do during visiting.
This study aims to gain a better understanding of what goes on in wards during visiting time by looking at the behaviour of everyone that is on the ward during that time. By understanding what is happening it may be possible to develop guidance for all those people that use wards during visiting time to help them reduce the risks of infection.
The study will use observation as a means of identifying who is on the ward during visiting time and what they do.
The research will be conducted within a single older peoples’ ward of an acute hospital over a 4 month period. The research is not intrusive and none of the key participants: patients, staff or visitors will have direct contact with the researcher.REC name
London - Brighton & Sussex Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
13/LO/1381
Date of REC Opinion
9 Sep 2013
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion