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Parent-held child health records do not improve care: a randomized controlled trial in Norway
Lillian Bjerkeli Grøvdal1, Anders Grimsmo, Tom Ivar Lund Nilsen
1Maternal and Child Health Centre, Molde, Norway.
Insights
The parent-held child health record (PHCHR) was well-received by parents and healthcare professionals in Norway. However, it did not improve collaboration or healthcare use, leading to a postponement of its national introduction.
Area of Science:
- Child Health Surveillance
- Health Record Management
- Parent-Professional Collaboration
Background:
- A parent-held child health record (PHCHR) was developed in Norway for nationwide implementation.
- The study aimed to evaluate the impact of this PHCHR.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the effects of a parent-held child health record (PHCHR) on parent-professional collaboration, healthcare utilization, and parental knowledge.
- To determine the feasibility and impact of introducing a nationwide PHCHR in Norway.
Main Methods:
- A randomized controlled trial was conducted in maternal and child health centers across 10 Norwegian municipalities.
- 309 parents participating in the National Preschool Health Surveillance Programme were included.
- The intervention group received a PHCHR with usage instructions, while the control group did not.
Main Results:
- 73% of the intervention group used the PHCHR regularly, and 79% found their input helpful.
- 92% of parents favored permanent adoption of the PHCHR.
- No significant impact was observed on healthcare utilization, parental knowledge, or satisfaction with communication.
Conclusions:
- The PHCHR demonstrated high acceptance among parents and professionals.
- Despite positive reception, the PHCHR did not yield measurable improvements in collaboration or healthcare use to justify national implementation costs.
- The nationwide introduction of the PHCHR in Norway has been postponed.
Objective:
To study the effects of a parent-held child health record (PHCHR) that was created by the Norwegian Board of Health with the purpose of introducing this to the whole country.
Design:
Randomized controlled trial.
Setting:
Maternal and child health centres in 10 municipalities in Norway.
Subjects:
Parents of 309 children attending the National Preschool Health Surveillance Programme.
Intervention:
Half of the parents were given a PHCHR and short instructions on how it was expected to be used.
Main Outcome Measures:
Parent-professional collaboration, healthcare utilization, and parents' knowledge about child health matters and illness.
Results:
Some 73% of the intervention group used the PHCHR regularly when visiting the health centres, 79% reported that their own writing in the record was helpful, and 92% favoured the PHCHR being permanently adopted. Use of the record did not influence the utilization of healthcare services, parents' knowledge of their child's health, or parents' satisfaction with information or communication with professionals.
Conclusions:
The PHCHR was well accepted by parents and professionals but it had no effects on collaboration, healthcare utilization, or other measures that could justify the costs of introducing the record into common use. Therefore, the introduction of a parent-held child health record in Norway is being postponed.
