Parental perceptions & paediatric emergency dept. attendances in Covid [COVID-19]
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Parental perceptions and Paediatric Emergency Department attendances in Covid-19 (PPEDiC)
IRAS ID
287536
Contact name
Maggie Nyirenda
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust
ISRCTN Number
ISRCTN12833010
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 0 months, 21 days
Research summary
During the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been a significant fall in attendance numbers to paediatric emergency departments nationwide. There have been various reasons suggested for this, such as fears about hospital acquired infection, avoidance of public transport, or possible interpretation of advice regarding self-isolation and social distancing during lockdown. In some cases, hesitancy to attend hospital has led to children being brought to the emergency department only at a late stage of their illnesses, and may have directly lead to a poor outcome for these children.
Our study aims to explore parental views of using the paediatric emergency department during the pandemic, and to consider the factors behind any changes in health seeking behaviour. We will recruit participants from parents of children who attend the paediatric emergency department (PED) and paediatric assessment unit (PAU) in our hospital, by inviting them to complete a questionnaire exploring their perspectives. We will seek consent to additionally conduct a 20 -30 minute semi-structured interviews with a proportion of these participants, and aim to gain deeper information to help us understand how parents decide how to appropriately seek help, and which public health messages are thought to be effective.
We intend to use this information to determine how we can best communicate with families during national emergencies going forward to ensure the safety of our patients. Findings from a study such as ours would provide evidence for how to develop tailored communication materials for parents. Findings of our research could also assist with planning of paediatric services during large scale or similar crises, ensuring that paediatric healthcare facilities are appropriately resourced to match the volumes and types of presentations to be expected.
REC name
East of England - Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
20/EE/0231
Date of REC Opinion
30 Oct 2020
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion