This mixed methods study aims to understand how factors such as ethnicity, deprivation, language, and access to healthcare affect outcomes for children admitted to paediatric intensive care (PICU).
The main questions it aims to answer are:
* Why are some children more likely to be admitted to paediatric intensive care, or to have worse outcomes once they are there, depending on their ethnicity or background? * At what points in a child's healthcare journey could earlier support or intervention make a difference?
The first part of the study will involve interviewing parents and carers of children admitted to intensive care and health care professionals working in or referring children to intensive care. The second part of the study will be an analysis of existing NHS data.
Participants will have an interview with a researcher lasting 45 minutes to an hour.
Parent or carer of a child admitted to paediatric intensive care at one of the participating sites: Great Ormond Street Hospital, Birmingham Children's Hospital, St Mary's Hospital, or Royal Manchester Children's Hospital.
Aged 18 years or over.
Able to provide informed consent.
Approached no earlier than 48 hours after the child's admission to PICU.
Individuals unable to provide informed consent.
Families of children with ongoing safeguarding concerns at the time of potential recruitment.
Families who are actively involved in a formal complaint process against the hospital at the time of recruitment.
Parents/carers approached within 48 hours of PICU admission.
Imperial College London
Lead sponsor
Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust
Collaborator
St Mary's Hospital, London
Collaborator
Birmingham Children's Hospital, United Kingdom
Collaborator
Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust
Collaborator