RECOVER plus: a website to support recovery after critical illness
Research type
Research Study
Full title
RECOVER plus: A clinically integrated e-health resource to support post-hospital recovery and self-management among survivors of critical illness
IRAS ID
186022
Contact name
Pam Ramsay
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
Can a novel website, offered as part of a dedicated ICU rehabilitation and follow-up service help support patients and families after hospital discharge?
Qualitative research with patients and families recovering after critical illness suggests that many feel "abandoned" after hospital discharge, and that they struggle to find information and advice on common problems after Intensive Care, how to manage the recovery process, and how to get the kinds of help they need in the community e.g. financial advice in long-term sick leave or care-giving.
We have developed a novel website to help support patients recovering after Intensive Care, and their family members.It was developed on the basis of over 120 interviews with patients and families in completed research (including one study which interviewed patients at up to a year following hospital discharge). It has been specifically designed to provide meaningful online information and advice, and support from other patients and family members (using a chat room or forum).
We would like to find out if the website is helpful to patients and their family members as part of an established rehabilitation and follow-up service for ICU patients at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. We will continue to telephone patients and families as part of our routine follow-up service, and will invite a number of patients and family members who have used the website to take part in a research interview at 3 months after hospital discharge.We would like to find out in more detail whether and how they found the website useful and if there is anything that could be done to improve it. We acknowledge that patients and family members may have very different experiences of using the website and would prefer to interview them separately. We will accommodate patients and family members who prefer to be interviewed together.
REC name
South East Scotland REC 02
REC reference
15/SS/0168
Date of REC Opinion
25 Sep 2015
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion