Patients’ experiences of Covid-19 recovery and ICU follow-up clinic
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Exploration of patients’ experiences of an intensive care follow-up clinic and its role in recovery from Covid-19 following discharge from intensive care.
IRAS ID
280551
Contact name
Manoj Juj
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Royal Holloway, University of London
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 30 days
Research summary
A stay on an intensive care unit (ICU) can be a distressing experience regardless of the reason for admission. Common experiences in intensive care include being tethered to machines, difficulty communicating, pain and discomfort, impaired cognitive functioning and separation from loved ones. As a result, depression and anxiety are common experiences after discharge (Samuelson et al., 2007). Long-term difficulties that occur following critical illness are known as post-intensive care syndrome (PICS). This consists of impairment in cognition, psychological and physical health persisting beyond ICU discharge (Rawal, Yadav & Kumar, 2017). PICS can affect patients’ quality of life, families, and increase healthcare costs (da Costa et al., 2019).
Follow-up appointments have been recommended for all patients who have had a stay in intensive care for more than four days and are at risk of morbidity (NICE, 2009). The aim of the follow-up clinic is to carry out an assessment of the person’s health and social care needs and make referrals to the appropriate rehabilitation, social care and/or mental health services. Follow-up appointments and rehabilitation programmes have been recommended for those who have been admitted to ICU as a result of Covid-19. The experiences of attending such clinics has been previously explored for cancer surgery patients (Pattison et al., 2007). However, as Covid-19 is a new illness, there has been no research to date exploring the recovery of people effected. Follow-up appointments are planned to be offered to all patients who have been discharged from ICU following treatment for Covid-19. It is hoped that attending a follow-up clinic may play a role in facilitating a person’s recovery, although the specific aspects of the follow-up clinic which patients find beneficial remain unclear.
This study aims to gain insight into the experiences of Covid-19 patients who have attended an intensive care follow-up clinic. How patients describe their recovery from Covid-19, their narratives of their experiences of the follow-up clinic and how this contributes to their recovery will be explored. Semi-structured interviews will be conducted with a sample of approximately 6-8 adults who attended a follow-up appointment, had treatment for Covid-19 within an ICU, and had an ICU stay longer than 48 hours, been ventilated for more than 5 days, and/or experienced delirium. Analysis will use interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA).
REC name
London - Camden & Kings Cross Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
20/LO/0852
Date of REC Opinion
3 Aug 2020
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion