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Research project

Install and evaluate dementia button on ambulance electronic patient record. Funded by the Health Foundation Q Exchange.

Project overview

Older people have a high usage of emergency ambulance services. Dementia is a common condition affecting older people using health services, and impacts on all aspects of their care.
South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS) in partnership with academic colleagues from the Universities of Portsmouth and Southampton and members of the public carried out an audit and a survey of ambulance clinical staff on the recording of dementia in the SCAS electronic patient record (ePR).
We found that dementia is recorded in 16 different free-text fields on the ePR, making it difficult for accurate data retrieval by other staff referring to the record. Clinicians surveyed suggested that a designated button would enable systematic recording of dementia, facilitating transfer of this key information to other services.
We propose to implement this digital change and evaluate its implementation using a re-audit of the electronic data and a further survey of clinical staff.

Staff

Lead researcher

Dr Carole Fogg

Senior Research Fellow

Research interests

  • Use of health and social care ‘big data’ to characterise older people’s service use and outcomes, especially for people living with frailty or dementia.
  • Development and assessment of interventions to improve care and quality of life for older adults.
  • Methodological expertise: epidemiology, clinical trials of medicines and devices, feasibility studies, patient and public involvement and engagement with health services research.

Collaborating research institutes, centres and groups

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