Exploring recovery and rehabilitation experiences of adults with major and moderate non-neurological traumatic injuries in the north of Scotland.

Kromrey, Laura

Abstract

Traumatic injuries can have a significant impact on individuals' short-term and long-term health outcomes. The introduction of trauma networks internationally has improved the survival of individuals with severe physical injuries. With more individuals surviving traumatic injuries, the focus of research and clinical practice has expanded to include assessing long-term outcomes and rehabilitation needs in the traumatic injury population. The North of Scotland Major Trauma Network launched in 2018 and, as this network develops, there is an interest in the recovery experiences of individuals following traumatic injuries to inform local practice. The aim of this thesis was to better understand the recovery and rehabilitation experiences of adults with non-neurological major and moderate traumatic injuries. In line with the pragmatic philosophy and applied nature of the research, the findings were used to inform recommendations for clinical practice for the local trauma service. This thesis presents a systematic review of the qualitative evidence on the recovery experiences of adults with major and moderate non-neurological traumatic injuries using JBI methodology. This was followed by a qualitative study exploring the recovery experiences of adults with major and moderate non-neurological traumatic injuries, conducted using an Interpretive Description approach. Adults who had sustained moderate and major non-neurological traumatic injuries, and who had received acute care at the North of Scotland Major Trauma Centre were recruited from the North of Scotland Major Trauma Centre database via an opt-in postal recruitment strategy. Twenty-one semi-structured interviews were conducted virtually and analysed using framework analysis. The qualitative systematic review identified four synthesised findings from thirteen included reports: 1) Recovery experiences are highly individual and influenced by a range of intrapersonal factors; 2) Enduring physical and psychological consequences impact on recovery experiences following traumatic injuries; 3) Adults recovering from major and moderate traumatic injuries access a range of health and care services, as well as social support, during recovery; and 4) Patient–healthcare professional communication and information provision are valued by adults recovering from major and moderate traumatic injuries. The qualitative study identified three themes: 1) Management of physical impairments and psychological aspects throughout recovery; 2) Recovery, rehabilitation and participation experiences; and 3) Support, services and wider impact of injury throughout recovery. The findings from the systematic review and the qualitative study were used to create recommendations for the local trauma service, including valued practices to continue, recommended information provision, considerations for health care professionals and collaboration suggestions. Recommendations for future research were identified regarding development of information provision strategies and evaluation of accessibility of the local rehabilitation services. This doctoral thesis has comprehensively explored the experiences of adults following traumatic injuries by synthesising the current qualitative evidence in the literature and exploring recovery experiences of adults in the North of Scotland. The qualitative study contributes new knowledge to the literature in the field as there is no previous research on the recovery experiences of adults with traumatic injuries in Scotland. The findings from this thesis were used to inform recommendations for the local trauma service and areas for future research.

Citation

KROMREY, L. 2024. Exploring recovery and rehabilitation experiences of adults with major and moderate non-neurological traumatic injuries in the north of Scotland. Robert Gordon University, DPT thesis. Hosted on OpenAIR [online]. Available from: https://doi.org/10.48526/rgu-wt-2571149

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Nov 5, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Nov 5, 2024
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.48526/rgu-wt-2571149
• Keywords: Trauma; Trauma patients; Physiotherapy; Rehabilitation
• Public URL: https://rgu-repository.worktribe.com/output/2571149
• Award Date: May 31, 2024