Lived Versus Perceived Frailty and Falls in Older Adults Using an English Regional Ambulance Service: A Descriptive Phenomenological Study

20 Pages Posted: 4 Sep 2024

See all articles by Karl Charlton

Karl Charlton

NHS Foundation Trust - North East Ambulance Service

Tripta Rathour

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Emma Burrow

NHS Foundation Trust - North East Ambulance Service

Abstract

ObjectiveFrailty is of increasing importance for healthcare systems as well as the personalised care agenda.  Despite the evolving body of research exploring frailty and falls in the ambulance setting, the voices of frail older adults who use ambulance services, are seldom heard.  Through first-hand accounts of older adults with frailty and falls, this study set out to describe and contrast objective versus perceived frailty.MethodsA descriptive phenomenological study involving eight participants with frailty who used a regional English National Health Service ambulance trust after a fall, conducted between July 2022-February 2023.    ResultsAccounts from older adults highlight different perceptions of frailty and attitudes towards ageing.  Frailty and falls were experienced through varying perceptions of identity and Self, underpinned by acceptance, or otherwise, of an altered sense of embodiment, and a life with limits.    ConclusionOlder adults generally held negative perceptions of frailty, falls and ageing, but also challenged the negative terms frequently used to describe frailty, suggesting some frail older adults remain positive and still value life.  Paramedics are likely to require further training and support to manage patients with frailty effectively and improve patient experience. InnovationThese data add a new dimension to our understating of frailty.

Note:
Funding declaration: The study was funded by Mangar UK, but they had no involvement in the design or implementation of this study, or in the writing of this manuscript.

Conflict of Interests: None.

Ethics statement: Ethics approval for this study was received Fulham Research Ethics Committee [22/PR/0620] and the Health Research Authority. All participants provided written informed consent prior to interview.

Keywords: Frailty, falls, ambulance, phenomenology

Suggested Citation

Charlton, Karl and Rathour, Tripta and Burrow, Emma, Lived Versus Perceived Frailty and Falls in Older Adults Using an English Regional Ambulance Service: A Descriptive Phenomenological Study. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4935076 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4935076

Karl Charlton (Contact Author)

NHS Foundation Trust - North East Ambulance Service ( email )

Tripta Rathour

affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email )

No Address Available

Emma Burrow

NHS Foundation Trust - North East Ambulance Service ( email )

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