Follow-up care after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest: A pilot study of survivors and families’ experiences and recommendations

• Published in: Resuscitation plus Vol. 7; p. 100154
• Main Authors: Mion, Marco, Case, Rosalind, Smith, Karen, Lilja, Gisela, Blennow Nordström, Erik, Swindell, Paul, Nikolopoulou, Eleni, Davis, Jean, Farrell, Kelly, Gudde, Ellie, Karamasis, Grigoris V., Davies, John R., Toff, William D., Abella, Benjamin S., Keeble, Thomas R.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 01-09-2021; Elsevier
• Subjects: Anestesi och intensivvård; Anesthesiology and Intensive Care; Applied Psychology; Assessment; Cardiac and Cardiovascular Systems; Clinical Medicine; Clinical Paper; Cognitive impairments; Kardiologi; Klinisk medicin; Medical and Health Sciences; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Neurologi; Neurology; Out-of-hospital heart arrest; Patient involvement; Patient outcome; Psychology; Psychosocial functioning; Psykologi; Samhällsvetenskap; Social Sciences; Tillämpad psykologi; Cognitive impairments; Patient involvement; Patient outcome; Psychosocial functioning; Assessment; Out-of-hospital heart arrest
• ISSN: 2666-5204; 2666-5204
• DOI: 10.1016/j.resplu.2021.100154

Cognitive and physical difficulties are common in survivors of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA); both survivors and close family members are also at risk of developing mood disorders. In the UK, dedicated follow-up pathways for OHCA survivors and their family are lacking. A cohort of survivors and family members were surveyed regarding their experience of post-discharge care and their recommended improvements.
123 OHCA survivors and 39 family members completed questionnaires during an educational event or later online. Questions addressed both the actual follow-up offered and the perceived requirements for optimal follow-up from the patient and family perspective, including consideration of timing, professionals involved, involvement of family members and areas they felt should be covered.
Outpatient follow-up was commonly arranged after OHCA (77%). This was most often conducted by a cardiologist alone (80%) but survivors suggested that other professionals should also be involved (e.g. psychologist/counsellor, 64%). Topics recommended for consideration included cardiac arrest-related issues (heart disease; cause of arrest) mental fatigue/sleep disturbance, cognitive problems, emotional problems and daily activities. Most survivors advocated an early review (<1month; 61%). Most family members reported some psychological difficulties (95%); many of them (95%) advocated a dedicated follow-up appointment for family members of survivors.
The majority of OHCA survivors advocated an early follow-up following hospital discharge and a holistic, multidimensional assessment of arrest sequelae. These results suggest that current OHCA follow-up often fails to address patient-centred issues and to provide access to professionals deemed important by survivors and family members.