Meningitis Now partner with University of Plymouth for important study
Has ‘Stay Home’ advice delayed treatment for children?
Meningitis Now is delighted to be working in partnership with the University of Plymouth by supporting the launch of an important piece of research to find out if the pandemic has influenced how parents are accessing health care for their children.
Whilst the nation’s focus remains on the current coronavirus pandemic, with most people heeding the government’s advice to ‘Stay Home, Protect the NHS, Save Lives’, there is growing concern that people are not seeking urgent medical help for conditions such as stroke, heart attack or when a child is seriously ill or injured.
The number of children being seen by GPs and emergency departments has dropped substantially in the UK since the advice to ‘Stay Home’. This has led to concern that some children are getting treatment later than is typical, especially in the case of serious illnesses.
The University of Plymouth has launched a survey to find out how the ‘Stay Home’ advice during the pandemic has influenced parents’ decision-making and care of sick or injured children. The survey results will increase understanding of how these extraordinary times are affecting parents’ thinking about, and perception of, access to services for children. These findings will provide evidence to underpin the development of information designed to support parents to get help for their children when they need it, both during the pandemic and afterwards.
If your child has been ill or injured while you have been following government advice to ‘Stay Home’, you are invited to complete the anonymous survey. The researchers would like to know about your experiences if you are a parent or guardian caring for a child at this time, whether or not you decided to seek medical help, and whether or not your child needed hospital care.
"We are very happy to support this important piece of research that will increase understanding of how parents have been thinking about, and accessing, healthcare and support for their children during the pandemic."
Bev Corbett, Director of Research and Support, Meningitis Now.
