In a new £1.2 million study, researchers will investigate ways to improve how urgent and emergency care could be improved for patients living in rural and coastal areas.
Coastal emergency departments can face overcrowding in summer periods
Researchers at the Universities of York and Birmingham, in collaboration with Scarborough Hospital, will provide a better understanding of how emergency care is being transformed in rural and coastal areas, by looking at which models, or ways of working, help improve patient care and help emergency services cope with demand.
In the past, the way health and care services have been designed was based on guidance that was developed for the whole country. Demand on health and care services is often different in rural and coastal areas. For example, coastal emergency departments can face overcrowding in summer periods due to high numbers of visiting holiday makers.
Poorer health
People living in rural coastal areas can have poorer health and a lower life expectancy than those living in other areas. This new study will determine how the NHS can best deliver emergency care in rural and coastal areas.
Professor Joy Adamson, from the University of York's Department of Health Sciences, said: "Whilst this is a national study, we will select a number of sites to collect more detailed information, for example Scarborough.
"Here, we will focus on the needs of local patients, as they have been identified to us by them, and throughout the project we will continue to use their feedback to look for solutions that are relevant to the most pressing concerns with regard to accessing emergency care and their experience of the service."
Local needs
People living in Scarborough provided support to the funding bid by providing feedback; community groups, such as Age UK (North Yorkshire Coast and Moors) and SeeCHANGE, a cross-sector partnership who campaign for a healthier Scarborough, will continue to engage with researchers as the project develops.
Dr Arabella Scantlebury, University of Birmingham, said: "Developing ways of providing urgent and emergency care in rural and coastal areas in an equitable way is a priority for the NHS and the UK Government. Changes need to be designed with the needs of local patients and local problems in mind.
"As such, local community groups from Scarborough are helping to make sure the research addresses issues that are important to people living in rural coastal communities. These communities are often diverse, and the researchers want to make sure the project helps and represents as many people as possible."
Decision makers
The Research and Innovation Department at York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust will support the project which begins this month (February 2025)..
The study, funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), is expected to release its findings in 2027, and will inform national and international decision makers about how best to provide urgent emergency care in rural areas.
