Qualitative Analysis

We will observe how healthcare staff at up to 12 emergency departments and associated UEC systems work. We will talk to patients and staff to gain a detailed understanding of different ways of providing care.

In this part of the study, we will explore how urgent and emergency care (UEC) services work in rural and coastal areas, and why some models work better than others for patients, staff, and local communities.

We will focus on 10 to 12 carefully selected sites across England, visiting some sites in depth and others for shorter, focused time periods. At each site, we will talk to patients, carers, and staff from hospitals, ambulance services, primary care, and social care, and observe how services operate in practice. This will help us understand the real-world challenges UEC teams face, such as seasonal changes in population, staff shortages, and local access issues.

Case site data will highlight what is working well, where improvements are needed, and which approaches could be adopted more widely.

For more detail about our work packages, please read our protocol paper.