Most patients discharged from intensive care units (ICUs) suffer long-term health problems such as muscle weakness, fatigue, memory problems, and difficulty focusing, which makes returning to work difficult for them. We do not know which patients are more likely to need more care after a stay in ICU, or how receiving social care affects their future healthcare needs.Using information from hospital, community services, General Practice records and social care, I will identify patients that received and did not receive social care after being in hospital. I will find out what healthcare patients use after their hospital stay, explore which groups of patients use more or less healthcare (in particular those that were in intensive care), and why this might be. I will also look into how much receiving social care influences future healthcare use.As well as writing in academic journals, I will share my study findings with patient groups such as ICU Steps, the Bradford Institute for Health Research, and policymakers in the Department of Health and Social Care. I would like this research to inform the development of services to improve care and to help patients recover better after a stay in an ICU.
01/11/2024
1 year
