Medical professionals working in critical care do a lot of research to help improve outcomes for both patients and relatives. In recent years patient and public involvement in health care has become much more common and this extends into the area of research as well.
Can you help?
If you've been involved with intensive care, either as a patient or a relative, you may be able to help.
When we're contacted by medical staff seeking opinions from people who've been on the receiving end of critical care we'd like to make sure we can offer as wide a perspective as possible and give the most representative response we can.
Sign up to our patient and relative research volunteers list using the form below. If you have any problems, you can visit MailChimp access the form directly.
What is clinical research?
This video gives a lay-person’s introduction to the crucial role that clinical research in the healthcare plays in safely improving care. In England, 99% of hospital trusts support clinical research with involvement from all kinds of NHS healthcare staff, including nurses, doctors, physiotherapists and paramedics, and crucially, patients.
The video highlights:
- examples of how research has improved care in ICU,
- how there are the many different kinds of research studies that take place in ICU,
- the vital role in studies obtaining ethical approval to ensure that any participants are protected,
- and the how rules around consent safeguard patients at all times.
If you’re new to clinical research, this is a great place to start.
What's involved?
It depends entirely on what we're asked to help with as to what's involved. Work involved with recent research we've been contacted about with has ranged from:
- attending meetings with researchers,
- filling in online questionnaires and
- being asked to give opinions on the topics which mattered most to patients and relatives.
The work undertaken by researchers is crucial in improving the care given to others going through a period of critical illness and your own experiences can help. By contacting us, you're under no obligation to help with anything you'd rather not and you're free to ask us to remove you from our list of contacts at any time.
Your help is important and greatly appreciated.