Brief internet intervention for grieving children and adolescents: co-design and trial protocol

Background: Internet interventions may improve access to help for grieving young people. In feedback from recent trials of internet interventions for grief, youth emphasised treatments should be shorter to address lack of time, which was the main barrier to uptake.Objective: The aim was to co-design a new brief internet intervention for grieving children and adolescents, and to outline a protocol for a pilot feasibility randomised controlled trial.Method: Nine children and adolescents (mean age =   15.22, 77.7% female, 33.3% male) co-designed the brief internet intervention.Results: A randomised controlled trial is planned where six- to 18-year-olds will be randomly allocated to the intervention or waitlist control. The intervention will consist of a brief single-session online programme. Outcomes will be assessed at pre, post-treatment and one-month follow-up. The primary outcome is symptoms of anxiety; secondary outcomes are well-being, symptoms of depression, posttraumatic stress, and prolonged grief. Feasibility and acceptability will be assessed through recruitment rates, attrition and qualitative responses.Conclusions: Improving access to treatments for grief is important to address.Trial registration: ISRCTN.org identifier: ISRCTN21132251.