The Children Coming to Hospital Study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
A before and after study to explore the acceptability and impact of an app to help children undergoing planned procedures in hospital.
IRAS ID
251312
Contact name
Lucy Bray
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Edge Hill University
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 10 months, 6 days
Research summary
Children can find visiting a hospital a stressful and disorientating experience. Research shows that children can experience high levels of anxiety when going to hospital for procedures such as X-rays, blood tests and examinations. This anxiety is often caused by fear of the unknown, lack of preparation, fear of medical examinations and pain, worries over separation from parents and feelings of uncertainty. \nComputer based and app based interventions are a good way to provide children with information and have potential to enable them to become familiar with what will happen when they come to hospital for a planned procedure. This study is evaluating an app (Xploro) designed to familiarise children with what they may encounter and experience when they come to hospital for a planned procedure.\nThis study will explore the acceptability and impact of the Xploro app to help children undergoing planned procedures in hospital. We will collect information using questionnaires, observation and interviews from children and their parents before, during and after their planned hospital procedure. We will collect this information first from a group of children who receive the normal/standard hospital information (before group) and then from a group of children who receive the app (after group).\nWe will collect information on children and their parents’ understanding of their planned procedure, their levels of anxiety and their experiences of visiting hospital for a planned procedure. \nWe will analyse the qualitative data (information from observations and interviews) by looking for key themes. The quantitative information (questionnaires) will be analysed descriptively to look for frequencies and percentages and we will also use some basic statistical tests to explore the acceptability and impact of using the Xploro app compared to standard information. \n
REC name
Wales REC 5
REC reference
18/WA/0277
Date of REC Opinion
28 Aug 2018
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion