One Size Does Not Fit All: Discharge Teaching and Child Challenging Behaviors

Norah L Johnson1, Stacee Lerret2, Michele Polfuss3,4

  • 1College of Nursing, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI, USA.

Insights

An interactive iPad application for discharge teaching was less effective for parents of children with challenging behaviors compared to usual care. Further research is needed to optimize discharge support for this specific population.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Nursing
  • Health Informatics
  • Patient Education

Background:

  • Effective discharge teaching and care coordination are crucial for positive patient outcomes.
  • Children with challenging behaviors present unique needs in healthcare settings.
  • Digital health interventions are increasingly used to support patient education and care transitions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare the quality of discharge teaching and care coordination for parents of children with challenging behaviors using an interactive iPad application versus usual discharge care.
  • To assess the effectiveness of a digital discharge teaching tool for a specific pediatric population.

Main Methods:

  • A quasi-experimental longitudinal project comparing an interactive iPad application to usual discharge care.
  • Data collected from parents of children with challenging behaviors (n=14) receiving the application and a control group (n=11) receiving usual care.
  • Utilized the quality of discharge teaching scale-delivery subscale and the Care Transition Measure for evaluation.

Main Results:

  • Parents using the iPad application reported lower scores on discharge teaching quality (M=8.2) compared to usual care (M=9.6).
  • The application group also scored lower on the Care Transition Measure (M=2.44) than the usual care group (M=3.02).
  • Moderate to large effect sizes (0.554-0.775) indicated significant differences, with the application being less effective for this subset.

Conclusions:

  • The interactive iPad application for discharge teaching was less effective for parents of children with challenging behaviors.
  • Alternative discharge teaching strategies may be necessary for this specific patient group.
  • Further research with larger, targeted samples is recommended to address the unique needs of parents of children with challenging behaviors and improve their discharge experience.

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