The experiences of children and caregivers given PICU storybooks (2).
Research type
Research Study
Full title
A Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) 'storybooks' intervention for children and their caregivers: a case-series feasibility study.
IRAS ID
264521
Contact name
Laura McGunnigle
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Research Integrity and Governance Office
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 6 days
Research summary
Admission to a Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) can be extremely stressful for patients and their caregivers. Both are at heightened risk of psychological distress, including post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), which sometimes persist for months or years post-discharge. Unfortunately, few post-PICU psychological interventions have been studied. Documented challenges in PICU research (e.g. low recruitment rates) means feasibility issues require investigation before investing resources in intervention trials.
In adult intensive-care, diaries are used to help patients and families undergo key processes that underpin therapies to reduce PTSS: talking about and understanding their experiences. In the only study exploring paediatric ICU diaries, families gave positive feedback, but their clinical effectiveness has not yet been evaluated. Further, it is hypothesised that formatting diaries as 'storybooks' is more adaptable to the developmental variation of the paediatric population.
Using a case-series design, this research aims to establish the feasibility of recruiting to a study evaluating PICU storybooks. It will explore the acceptability of research tasks to families, the utility and sensitivity of psychometric measures, plus how storybooks are used and perceived in supporting psychological recovery. It is anticipated that the findings will directly inform the planning of a larger scale evaluation study, and adaptations to the intervention. We hope this will lead to improved support for families leaving PICU.Pairs of caregivers and children aged 3-15 will be recruited upon discharge from a PICU and will receive an individualised, developmentally-appropriate storybook about their PICU experiences. At discharge, and one, three and six months post-discharge, caregivers and children aged 8+ will complete questionnaires about psychological distress symptoms (depression, anxiety and PTSS) and their impact on functioning. Participants will be asked to keep a brief log of their storybook use and will be interviewed about their experience of the intervention and research procedures at three and six months post-discharge.
REC name
Wales REC 7
REC reference
19/WA/0140
Date of REC Opinion
8 May 2019
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion