Anonymised qualitative interview excerpts underpinning Phase 2 of the RecoverED programme theory development process

This dataset is associated with the publication Developing a programme theory of a complex, home-based rehabilitation intervention for recovery after an episode of delirium (PLOS ONE, accepted).The publication reports the process of developing and refining a programme theory underpinning RecoverED, a novel, home-based, multicomponent rehabilitation intervention designed to support recovery following an episode of delirium in older adults. The paper focuses on the methodological process and synthesis of evidence and does not report primary qualitative findings in detail.The dataset shared here comprises anonymised qualitative interview excerpts from Phase 2 of the programme theory development process. Phase 2 involved semi-structured qualitative interviews with key stakeholders, including older adults with lived experience of delirium, family carers, and healthcare professionals. These interviews were conducted to explore experiences of delirium and recovery, perceived support needs, and views on intervention components, mechanisms, and delivery.The interview data were used to inform, refine, and substantiate the developing programme theory, contributing to the identification of key intervention components, hypothesised mechanisms of action, and contextual factors. The excerpts provided represent the minimal qualitative dataset underpinning the analytic interpretations presented in the paper and are shared to support transparency, reproducibility, and reuse.All data have been fully anonymised in accordance with ethical approvals and participant consent. The dataset contains coded interview excerpts linked to analytic themes and does not include full interview transcripts.