Implementation of the Kids-CAT in clinical settings: a newly developed computer-adaptive test to facilitate the assessment of patient-reported outcomes of children and adolescents in clinical practice in Germany.

Purpose: To describe the implementation process of a computer-adaptive test (CAT) for measuring health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of children and adolescents in two pediatric clinics in Germany. The study focuses on the feasibility and user experience with the Kids-CAT, particularly the patient...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Publicado en:Quality of Life Research Vol. 25; no. 3; pp. 585 - 595
Autores principales: Barthel, D., Fischer, K., Nolte, S., Otto, C., Meyrose, A., Reisinger, S., Dabs, M., Thyen, U., Klein, M., Muehlan, H., Ankermann, T., Walter, O., Rose, M., Ravens-Sieberer, U., Fischer, K I, Meyrose, A-K
Formato: clinical trial research Journal Article
Publicado: Springer Nature Mar2016
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
Descripción
Sumario:Purpose: To describe the implementation process of a computer-adaptive test (CAT) for measuring health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of children and adolescents in two pediatric clinics in Germany. The study focuses on the feasibility and user experience with the Kids-CAT, particularly the patients' experience with the tool and the pediatricians' experience with the Kids-CAT Report.Methods: The Kids-CAT was completed by 312 children and adolescents with asthma, diabetes or rheumatoid arthritis. The test was applied during four clinical visits over a 1-year period. A feedback report with the test results was made available to the pediatricians. To assess both feasibility and acceptability, a multimethod research design was used. To assess the patients' experience with the tool, the children and adolescents completed a questionnaire. To assess the clinicians' experience, two focus groups were conducted with eight pediatricians.Results: The children and adolescents indicated that the Kids-CAT was easy to complete. All pediatricians reported that the Kids-CAT was straightforward and easy to understand and integrate into clinical practice; they also expressed that routine implementation of the tool would be desirable and that the report was a valuable source of information, facilitating the assessment of self-reported HRQoL of their patients.Conclusions: The Kids-CAT was considered an efficient and valuable tool for assessing HRQoL in children and adolescents. The Kids-CAT Report promises to be a useful adjunct to standard clinical care with the potential to improve patient-physician communication, enabling pediatricians to evaluate and monitor their young patients' self-reported HRQoL.