Pain management for school age children: design and development of a web-based programme

Abstract

Research in the area of pediatric pain management and online intervention development has largely focused on adolescents with chronic pain. Little is known about the acceptability of technology-based psychological treatment for early school-age children with chronic pain. This paper describes the iterative and phased approach used to develop a web-based intervention (Feeling Better) designed to enhance adaptive coping in children with chronic pain. Method(s): The Pre-clinical Development Phase involved: (1) a systematic review of empirical literature on the efficacy of psychological treatment for pediatric chronic pain delivered using information and communication technology; and (2) selection of a theoretical framework and intervention components. The Modelling Development Phase involved: (1) developing intervention platform materials; (2) qualitative assessment using a participative research process approach; (3) user-testing and (4) final intervention testing in an exploratory randomised controlled trial. Results and Conclusions: The systematic review highlighted that school-age children are an under-represented age group for clinical intervention and there is a lack of understanding about effective intervention features. Preliminary findings from the modelling development phase revealed similarities between parents’ and children’s understanding of what constitutes successful coping, but differences emerged on the value of specific coping strategies. Coping strategies addressing pain-related disability and enhancing a sense of belonging were identified as most important to children, while parents viewed coping strategies facilitating emotion regulation as the most necessary element. Preliminary findings of the ongoing, exploratory randomised control trial examining the feasibility of the Feeling Better intervention in comparison with a waitlist-control group will be discussed.