Impact of the orthoptic assessment on parental stress levels v1.0
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Evaluating the impact of the orthoptic assessment and its findings on parental stress levels
IRAS ID
270737
Contact name
Anna R O'Connor
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Liverpool
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 5 months, 31 days
Research summary
Background
Children with SEN (Special Educational Needs) are 28 times more likely to have visual problems than their typically developing peers. Thus, many children with SEN require the specialist care of an orthoptist. This care involves the assessment of visual functions including how well the child sees and uses their vision, eye movements, and interacts with their environment using the visual system but the impact of this assessment on the parent/guardian is not known.
Rationale
It has been demonstrated that an assessment of visual acuity (smallest detail identifiable at a fixed distance) followed by a report of this and how it relates to normal levels of visual acuity resulted in a reduction in parental stress. A typical orthoptic assessment encompasses not only assessment of visual acuity but also many other aspects of visual functioning. This additional information provided to parents/guardians may show further benefit affecting their reported stress levels. This outcome data could be important for services that may be under threat requiring evidence of their efficacy.
Aim
To evaluate the parental stress levels before and after an orthoptic assessment for parents of children with special educational needs.
Methods
Parent/Guardian of any child up to 12 years, with SEN, attending routine scheduled appointments will be invited to participate. They will be asked to complete a standardised and validated questionnaire prior to their appointment and then repeat the questionnaire after the appointment when they have received a written report of the findings. The vision testing will take place in orthoptic clinics located at NHS Hospital sites. The anticipated time frame for completion of the project is 18 months.
Analysis
The responses will be analysed to see if there is any change in the questionnaire scores and whether the results are related to the types of vision problems.REC name
Yorkshire & The Humber - Bradford Leeds Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
21/YH/0150
Date of REC Opinion
21 Jul 2021
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion