Introduction: Paediatric intensive care units (PICUs) survivors and their families often experience widespread morbidity and psychosocial consequences after discharge, known as post-intensive care syndrome in paediatrics (PICS-p). In Switzerland, more than 5000 children are admitted to PICUs each year, and despite the high survival rate, there are no data on post-PICU recovery. This study aims to investigate PICS in children and families and identify its associated factors.
Methods and analysis: This is a national, multicentre, longitudinal, observational study that includes PICU survivors, main family caregivers and siblings (n=1300) recruited from the eight Swiss accredited PICUs with follow-up at discharge, 1, 3 and 6 months after discharge from the PICU. Data will be collected on the domains of physical, emotional, social and cognitive health, as well as factors affecting the outcome related to demographics, clinical specification, PICU and family environment, as well as community and social resources. Structural equation models and growth mixture models will analyse the outcomes, and the heterogeneity of recovery that shed light on the diverse recovery experiences of children and their families. The study identifies risk and protective factors with a focus on the influence of social and familial resources. It will also explore the mutual impact of the child's recovery and parent/sibling psychosocial health.
Ethics and dissemination: The protocol is approved by the CER-VD ethics committee. Participants will be provided with verbal and written explanations of the study, and their privacy and anonymity will be protected throughout the process. The results will be presented at local and international conferences.
Approval number: Swiss ethics committees ID: 2022-02128, representing the eight cantons for both French and German-speaking parts of Switzerland.
Keywords: Health Equity; Paediatric intensive & critical care; Patient-Centered Care; Social Interaction.
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