Perioperative Preparation Application Developed for Children and Parents

Overview

Approaches to increase the compliance of children and parents in daily surgical interventions in children are limited. The primary aim of this study is to evaluate the clinical usability of the Paediatric Perioperative Preparation Game Application-PeroPap, which will be developed to prepare children and parents for day surgery. The secondary aim is to investigate its effect on the perioperative adaptation process of children and parents, children's symptoms such as pain, anxiety, nausea, vomiting and postoperative behavioural changes, and parents' anxiety and satisfaction.

Approaches to increase the compliance of children and parents in daily surgical interventions in children are limited. The primary aim of this study is to evaluate the clinical usability of the Paediatric Perioperative Preparation Game Application-PeroPap, which will be developed to prepare children and parents for day surgery. The secondary aim is to investigate its effect on the perioperative adaptation process of children and parents, children's symptoms such as pain, anxiety, nausea, vomiting and postoperative behavioural changes, and parents' anxiety and satisfaction. The research will be carried out as a prospective, randomised, controlled experimental study in the Pediatric Surgery Clinic of Ordu University Training and Research Hospital Gynecology and Children's Hospital. The population of the study will consist of children aged 7-10 years who underwent day surgery between the dates of the study. The sample of the study will consist of 348 children and their parents who will undergo day surgery between the specified dates, who meet the case selection criteria and agree to participate in the study. The study participants will be assigned to two groups as experimental (n=174) and control group (n=174) by computer-assisted randomisation. In the first phase of the study, PeroPap design will be created with expert opinions using the serious game development framework. The digital serious health game application PeroPap will be developed as an evidence-based interactive game specifically designed to address relevant challenges faced by the user and change behaviour. Children and parents will be downloaded to their digital devices with Android or IOS operating system by scanning the QR code by the executive via internet connection. Two separate options will be created for the child and parent on the application. Children in the experimental group will start receiving interactive perioperative preparation training with the PeroPap application 1 day before surgery and play the PeroPap game. Children will learn about the operation process by watching and playing the PeroPap character's cartoon story about the operation process. They will also listen to the song "PeroPap is having surgery" and play the "PeroPap Game" in the application, which they can play before and after surgery. At the same time, in the parent module, information will be provided for parents with the cartoon story "PeroPap is Having Surgery". The application will also include deep breathing exercises and mindfulness practices to reduce parents' anxiety. In order to meet the perioperative health care needs of the children and their parents in the control group, when they applied to the outpatient clinic for anaesthesia consultation on the working day before the operation, standard individualised care interventions will be provided according to their needs preoperatively and until their discharge, and children and parents will be given surgery preparation training with the education booklet "PeroPap is Having Surgery". Research data will be collected with the Child and Parent Descriptive Information Form, Child Perioperative Follow-up Form, Baxter Nausea Scale-BARF, Eastern Ontario Children's Hospital Pain Scale, Comfort Behaviours Checklist (CBCL), Multidimensional Perioperative Anxiety Scale in Children, Modified Yale Preoperative Anxiety Scale, Postoperative Pain Scale for Parents, State and Trait Anxiety Scale and PedsQL Health Care Parent Satisfaction Scale.