Table 1.
Summary of each participant
| Pseudonym | Relative present? | Age range (years) | APACHE II | Diagnosis | Length of stay, ICU (days) | Length of stay, hospital (days) | Discharge location |
| Richard | No. | 30–39 | 17 | Acute porphryia. | 9 | 102 | Long-term, inpatient rehabilitation. |
| Martin | No. | 30–39 | 14 | Drug overdose, aspiration pneumonia and rhabdomyolysis. | 26 | 32 | Home, outpatient rehabilitation. |
| Sadiq | No. | 50–59 | 22 | Exacerbation of COPD. | 33 | 34 | Home, full care package. |
| Sarah | No. | 60–69 | 24 | Open hernia repair – postoperative MOF | 115 | 197 | Long-term, inpatient rehabilitation. |
| Tom | No. | 60–69 | 10 | Pneumonia and pulmonary embolism. | 10 | 16 | Home, outpatient rehabilitation. |
| Evan | No. | 60–69 | 15 | Acute bowel obstruction – colon cancer. | 5 | 48 | Home, no rehabilitation. |
| Sasha | Yes, daughter. | 50–59 | 10 | Neuromyelitis opitica. | 19 | 98 | Long-term, inpatient rehabilitation. |
| John | No. | 40–49 | 27 | Influenza. | 33 | 71 | Long-term, inpatient rehabilitation. |
| George | No. | 50–59 | 12 | Drug overdose – respiratory failure. | 25 | 36 | Home, no rehabilitation. |
| Michelle | No. | 80–89 | 14 | Exacerbation of COPD. | 6 | 42 | Declined inpatient rehabilitation – home, full care package. |
| Jim (M) | Yes, wife. | 50–59 | 11 | Food poisoning – MOF. | 10 | 18 | Home, no rehabilitation. |
| Matthew (M) | No. | 70–79 | 18 | Hospital-acquired pneumonia – fractured NOF. | 5 | 178 | Nursing home. |
| Caroline (F) | Yes, husband. | 70–79 | 22 | Anterior resection for bowel cancer. | 13 | 63 | Short stay, inpatient rehabilitation. |
| Ben (M) | No. | 40–49 | 15 | Drug overdose. | 65 | 107 | Home, care package. |
| David (M) | Yes, wife present. | 63 | 21 | Influenza. | 150 | 232 | Long-term, inpatient rehabilitation. |
APACHE, Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II; COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; ICU, intensive care unit; MOF, multiorgan failure; NOF, neck of femur.