ICU RTIs – The burden, management strategies adopted and outcomes of severe respiratory tract infections in intensive care units

Lay Description

Serious lung infections are a common problem. This research project will study how people with serious lung infections are cared for in intensive care units and what happens to them during and after their treatment. The regional study will focus on all types of severe respiratory tract infections treated in the ICUs across the Wessex region. We will use the information that is already available from different databases from various hospitals to combine the data to provide detailed information on the severity of lung infections, the treatment they received (such as ventilators or medicines to support their heart or kidneys) and whether they survived their stay in ICU or hospital. This will help to understand the burden of these infections locally and how care varies between hospitals. We will collect all available data to assess how patients can be best managed with severe respiratory tract infections and how this could be improved in the future.

Public Benefit Statement

The project has several important benefits for patients and the public.

First, it will help identify how many patients are affected by serious respiratory infections and how they are treated (this is currently unknown).

Second, it will help NHS services plan better for the future, especially during winter or times of high demand or during pandemics.

Third, it will highlight any variations in care between centres that could be improved.

Finally, the results will help researchers design better clinical trials to test new treatments by showing where the needs are greatest and which patients are at highest risk.

We will not collect any new information from patients, and no individuals will be identified. The data is already available in clinical settings. We will collect these data, and the findings will be shared with doctors, nurses, NHS leaders and the public to support better care for people with serious lung infections.