Evaluating Interventions to Support Child-Parent Involvement in Health Decisions

Abstract

Objective: To explore interventions that support children and parents making health decisions. Systematic Review: A systematic review was conducted to synthesize evidence on interventions that support children’s health decision making. Five studies of variable quality were included. Interventions that improved decision making were decision coaching with or without an educational resource, or education alone. Pre-/post-test pilot: A pre-/post-test study evaluated the feasibility and acceptability of decision coaching guided by the Ottawa Family Decision Guide for children with type 1 diabetes and their parents. Of 16 families invited, 7 participated. Compared to children/parents who preferred one option at baseline, participants who were unsure of the best option rated decision coaching as more acceptable and had larger decreases in decisional conflict. Conclusions: Few studies have evaluated interventions supporting children’s decision making. The piloted decision support intervention was feasible and acceptable, particularly with children and parents who were unsure of the best option.