Co-design and evaluation of a regional and rural translation bronchiolitis platform: study protocol

Bronchiolitis is the leading cause of hospitalisation in infants under one year. While evidence-based guidelines exist, including the updated Australasian Bronchiolitis Guidelines (2025), variations in care persist. Improving care in regional and rural hospitals is challenging due to limited access to paediatric expertise and evidence-based resources, contributing to continued use of low-value interventions.

This mixed methods study will use a human-centred design approach to co-design and evaluate the usability of the Regional and Rural Translation Bronchiolitis (RART-Bronch) platform, an interactive online tool targeted at non-metropolitan settings. The platform will feature bronchiolitis educational resources, implementation support, a benchmarking and feedback tool, and family education materials. Participants will be regional and rural clinicians and parents of infants hospitalised with bronchiolitis in these settings. Data will be collected through co-design meetings, usability surveys, semi-structured interviews, and think aloud methods. Engagement with the co-design process will also be evaluated.

We will develop a user-friendly, evidence-based platform specific to regional and rural contexts that supports bronchiolitis guideline adherence and enhances clinical decision-making.

Effectiveness will be evaluated in a future cluster randomised controlled trial and may inform future implementation strategies for improving care, quality and equity across regional and rural healthcare.

This study aims to reduce variation in bronchiolitis care by co-designing an interactive online platform, RART-Bronch, with clinicians and parents from regional and rural settings. The platform aims to support sustainable reductions in low-value care and improve outcomes for infants with bronchiolitis. It will deliver evidence-based guidance to clinicians working in regional and rural hospitals with limited paediatric expertise. Findings will inform future implementation of tailored education, audit and feedback strategies in acute care. This work aims to enhance paediatric care quality in under-resourced settings and contribute to scalable, equitable improvements in bronchiolitis management across Australia.