The HAD study version 1.0
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Hospital-associated Deconditioning: Exploring factors contributing to the physical and cognitive decline of older adults during hospitalisation
IRAS ID
339710
Contact name
Thomas Cartledge
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Southampton
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 6 months, 1 days
Research summary
Older adults are at a greater risk of acute hospital admission and experiencing deconditioning when in hospital due to prolonged periods of bed rest and immobility. The rapid state of deconditioning is termed hospital acquired deconditioning (HAD) and is associated with adverse outcomes for older adults, especially those who are already frail on admission. To better understand the impact of hospitalisation, this mixed methods observational study will aim to measure the impact of hospitalisation on the physical and cognitive function of older orthopaedic patients, as well as explore patient and staff views and experiences on deconditioning during hospitalisation.
The study objectives:
-To explore the prevalence of hospital-associated deconditioning in older adults admitted to orthopaedic wards.
-To compare prevalence of deconditioning among upper limb and lower limb orthopaedic patients.
-To explore older orthopaedic patients and staff’s perceptions of hospital acquired deconditioning and barriers to physical activity during hospital admission.
-To assess the hospital re-admission rate within the recruited participants after 3 and 6 months.
This is a single site study, being conducted at University Hospital Southampton (UHS).
Patients aged 65 and above admitted to UHS with an acute orthopaedic condition will be approached to take part in three data collection time points. The first two will be in-hospital, one at admission (baseline) and one at 7 days or at discharge if earlier. The third measurement point will be a follow-up 4-6 weeks after patient discharge. At these time points physical and cognitive function will be assessed through validated questionnaires and measurement tools.
Following this, a sample of recruited patients (from the quantitative data collection) and hospital staff (working at UHS with orthopaedic patients) will be asked to take part in one semi-structured interview, to explore experiences and views on hospital acquired deconditioning.REC name
Wales REC 7
REC reference
24/WA/0117
Date of REC Opinion
7 May 2024
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion