A national survey of intensive care follow‐up clinics

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Abstract
Intensive care follow‐up clinics allow extended review of survivors of critical illness. However, the current provision of intensive care follow‐up clinics in the UK is unknown. We performed a survey of intensive care follow‐up clinic practice in the UK. A questionnaire was sent to 298 intensive care units in the UK to determine the number of follow‐up clinics and details of current follow‐up practice. Responses were received from 266 intensive care units, an 89% response rate. Eighty units (30%) ran a follow‐up clinic. Only 47 (59%) of these clinics were funded. Of those intensive care units without a follow‐up clinic, 158 (88%) cited ‘financial constraints’ as the reason. Over half of the follow‐up clinics (44 clinics, 55%) were nurse‐led, and the majority (56 clinics, 77%) only routinely review patients treated on the intensive care unit for 3 or 4 days or longer. Nearly half of the follow‐up clinics (39 clinics, 49%) have pre‐negotiated access to at least one other out‐patient service.