Multimethodology research with boys with severe haemophilia

To describe the use of an innovative, multimethodological approach to exploring the day-to-day experiences of boys across a wide age range to better understand the effects of modern haemophilia treatment on their lives.

Children and young people with severe haemophilia can now be treated with prophylaxis and potentially have a lifestyle close to that of those without haemophilia. However, boys frequently describe living with haemophilia as burdensome.

The study, based on a grounded theory approach, was conducted with boys aged four to 16 years old, using research methods that included photo-elicitation, 'draw and write' techniques, focus groups run by participant co-researchers and individual interviews.

Grounded theory was used to enable rich data capture, through reshaping of research questions as theory developed.

The effectiveness of the methods used is discussed, along with consideration of the issues raised.

These methods are effective for use with children. They can result in robust data and are also fun for child participants.

Understanding life with chronic disease from a child's perspective can improve clinical care through a better understanding of health behaviour and lifestyle implications.