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. 2025 May 2:8:100339.
doi: 10.1016/j.ijnsa.2025.100339. eCollection 2025 Jun.

Rehabilitation needs, preferences, barriers, and facilitators of individuals with sepsis: a qualitative study

Jenna Smith-Turchyn  1 , Melina Alborzi  1 , Julianne Hong  1 , Jordon L Hvizd  1 , Shannon McKenney  2 , Anastasia N L Newman  1 , Bram Rochwerg  3   4 , Michelle E Kho  1
Affiliations

Rehabilitation needs, preferences, barriers, and facilitators of individuals with sepsis: a qualitative study

Jenna Smith-Turchyn et al. Int J Nurs Stud Adv. .

Abstract

Purpose: To explore the rehabilitation needs, preferences, barriers, and facilitators of sepsis survivors.

Methods: We performed a qualitative descriptive study. We included English-speaking adults over 18 years old with a past diagnosis of sepsis or a caregiver of an individual with a past diagnosis of sepsis. We conducted semi-structured interviews on Zoom, guided by the COM-B Framework and transcribed interviews verbatim. Two reviewers conducted qualitative content analysis.

Results: We included 22 participants. Participants identified the need for early and continued rehabilitation, including support for physical and cognitive health. They described barriers related to social isolation, finances, and lack of information on and accessibility to rehabilitation services. Participants reported that they preferred to participate in rehabilitation that included peer support, education for themselves and caregivers, and personalized services. Interview findings underscore the need to increase the accessibility of rehabilitation resources and the knowledge of sepsis survivors and their caregivers on the condition and the benefits of rehabilitation.

Conclusion: We identified rehabilitation needs, preferences, barriers, and facilitators necessary to better support sepsis survivors in their recovery process. Future research should focus on tailoring strategies to improve the opportunity for rehabilitation for sepsis survivors and increasing the knowledge of sepsis in survivors and their caregivers to maximize participation in rehabilitation for individuals with sepsis.

Keywords: Health equity; Health services; Patient-centered care; Rehabilitation; Sepsis.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Fig 1:
Fig. 1
COM-B Framework (Adapted from Michie et al., 2011 (S Michie et al., 2011)) with the application to rehabilitation.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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