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. 2025 Feb 5:8:e55023.
doi: 10.2196/55023.

Digital Health Program to Support Family Caregivers of Children Undergoing Growth Hormone Therapy: Qualitative Feasibility Study

Alba Jiménez-Díaz #  1 , Maitena Pierantonelli #  1 , Patricia Morte Coscolín  2   3 , Amaia Salinas-Uhalte  2   3 , Silvia Quer-Palomas  4 , Octavio Rivera-Romero  5   6 , Rocío Herrero  7   8 , Luis Fernández-Luque  4 , Rosa Baños  1   8 , Ricardo C Berrios  4 , Antonio de Arriba  2   3
Affiliations

Digital Health Program to Support Family Caregivers of Children Undergoing Growth Hormone Therapy: Qualitative Feasibility Study

Alba Jiménez-Díaz et al. JMIR Pediatr Parent. .

Erratum in

Abstract

Background: Caregivers of children with growth hormone deficiency often face emotional challenges (eg, stress) associated with their children's health conditions. This psychological burden might affect children's adherence to treatment and hinder their health-related quality of life (HrQoL). This assumption is leading to seriously considering multidimensional clinical approaches to pediatric health conditions where the emotional well-being of caregivers should be accounted for to optimize children's health outcomes. Novel mobile health (mHealth) solutions based on emotional and behavioral change techniques can play a promising role because they are increasingly used within different health areas to support adaptive psychological functioning. However, whether and how mHealth solutions of this type of emotional well-being support caregivers of children with growth-related problems is an issue that needs to be clarified.

Objective: This study aimed to gather qualitative information to better understand individualized experiences of caregiving of children undergoing growth hormone therapy (GHt) and perceived barriers or facilitators for the adoption of an mHealth solution called Adhera Caring Digital Program (ACDP).

Methods: A total of 10 family caregivers were recruited at Miguel Servet Children's Hospital, and they engaged with the ACDP for 1 month. The ACDP is a mobile-based digital intervention focused on promoting the overall well-being of family caregivers which provides access to personalized education, motivational mobile-based messages, and mental well-being exercises such as mindfulness or respiratory exercises. Subsequently, an individual semistructured interview was performed to gather qualitative user experience information.

Results: The digital intervention was well-received. The ACDP was found to be useful, easy to use, and understandable, addressing all the difficulties expressed by caregivers. It was also noted to be particularly helpful at the beginning of the treatment and, for some families, became a natural tool that strengthened the parent-child relationship.

Conclusions: The ACDP is a promising and well-accepted tool that enhances the experience of patients and caregivers. It improves the management of growth hormone deficiency and promotes the overall well-being of family caregivers.

Trial registration: ClinicalTrials NCT04812665; https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT04812665.

International registered report identifier (irrid): RR2-10.1186/s12911-022-01935-1.

Keywords: behavioral change; caregivers; children; digital health; feasibility study; growth hormone deficiency; health condition; mHealth; mobile Health; mobile based solutions; parent-child relationship; pediatric; psychological burden; quality of life; technology acceptance; therapy; wellbeing.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of Interest: This study is about a digital solution developed and commercialized by Adhera Health. Adhera Health, AA, and OR-R have other collaborations with Merck Healthcare KGaA beyond this study.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
An Educational Unit within the app.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Categories or themes identified in the interviews. GHD: growth hormone deficiency.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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