Telehealth in outpatient care for children and adolescents with chronic conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic: A scoping review protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Outpatient care for children and adolescents with chronic conditions needs to be continuous and programmed, encompassing comprehensive care, with periodically scheduled consultations, exams, and procedures, to promote quality of life and reduce mortality. In the context of the new coronavirus pandemic, however, outpatient care for children and adolescents with chronic conditions, in person, was hampered in favor of social isolation, a necessary sanitary measure to reduce and prevent the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019. In response to this need, studies suggest telehealth in pediatrics as a fertile and expanding field especially in times of pandemics. Here, we aimed to map the evidence related to telehealth in outpatient care for children and adolescents with chronic conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic, to identify which strategies were implemented and their impacts on the continuity of care. METHODS: A scoping review protocol is reported and guided by the Scoping Reviews Manual of the Joanna Briggs Institute. The search for evidence will cover the following databases: MEDLINE/PubMed, Cochrane Libary; Embase; Web of Science; Scopus; Cinahl and PsycINFO, plus additional sources, such as The British Library, Google Scholar, and Preprints [medRXiv]. No date or language restrictions will be employed in this scoping review. Two independent researchers will conduct the search strategy, study selection, data charting, and data synthesis. RESULTS: The findings will be presented through tables, charts, narrative summaries, and assessed based on the type of data charted as well as outcomes. Additionally, the meaning of these findings will be considered as they relate to the guiding question, the characterization and measurement of the impact of different telehealth modalities used in outpatient care for children and adolescents with chronic conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the implications for practice and further research. DISCUSSION: To the best of our knowledge, this will be the first scoping review to look specifically at the telehealth modalities to be used in outpatient care for children and adolescents with chronic conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic. We expect that our results will be of interest to practitioners as well as researchers concerned with this particular emerging issue in the pandemic context. Also, the plans for the dissemination of this study comprise peer-reviewed publication and conference presentations. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Open Science Framework Registration: osf.io/5pqgu.

Fatigue and health related quality of life in children and adolescents with cancer.

PURPOSE: The study examined the different dimensions of fatigue (general, sleep/rest, cognitive), health related quality of life (HRQL) (physical, emotional, cognitive, social), and the relationships between fatigue and HRQL in hospitalized children and adolescents with cancer in Brazil. METHOD: Participants were recruited from a pediatric oncology inpatient unit in a comprehensive cancer care hospital in southeast Brazil. They completed the PedsQL Multidimensional Fatigue Scale and the PedsQL Inventory of Quality of Life (Generic and Cancer module) once during hospitalization. RESULTS: The majority (66.7%) of the participants (n = 38; mean age 12.1 ± 2.9 years) had total fatigue scores < 75 on 0 to 100 scale; with the mean total fatigue score of 63.8 ± 18.5. The majority (72.2% generic; 83.3% cancer modules) had total PedsQL scores < 75 on 0 to 100 scale. The mean PedsQL score on generic module (61.1 ± 17.0) was similar to the mean PedsQL score cancer module (59.1 ± 16.7). Significant correlations were found between total fatigue and quality of life generic (r = 0.63, p = 0.000) and cancer module (r = 0.74, p = 0.000). CONCLUSIONS: The study is the first to report fatigue and health related quality of life in hospitalized children and adolescents with cancer in Brazil. Similar to experiences of other children in the world, our findings indicate that children and adolescents with cancer had problems with fatigue that were associated with low HRQL. Future studies are recommended to examine interventions (exercise, leisurely activities) that may alleviate fatigue and improve HRQL in pediatric patients with cancer.

[Playful strategies for data collection with child cancer patients: an integrative review]. / Estratégias lúdicas de coleta de dados com crianças com câncer: revisão integrativa.

Children are the best sources of information on their experiences and opinions, and qualitative studies have favored the development and application of techniques that facilitate their self-expression and approaching the researcher. Through an integrative literature review, the objective of this research was to identify playful resources used in qualitative research data collection with child cancer patients, and their forms of application. Systemized searches of electronic databases and a virtual library were undertaken, which, combined with a non-systemized sample, totaled 15 studies spanning the period from 2000 and 2010. Drawing, toys, puppets, photography and creativity and sensitivity dynamics were identified which, in association with interviews or not, were shown to directly or indirectly facilitate data collection, thereby broadening the interaction with the children, and permitting further expression of their feelings. The advantages and limitations of using these resources are presented thus contributing to planning research with children.

Assessing the care of children under one year old in Primary Health Care.

OBJECTIVE: to analyze the presence and extent of Primary Health Care attributes and the strength of affiliation of children under one year old in a Family Health Unit. METHOD: cross-sectional, descriptive study conducted between October 25, 2010 and May 14, 2011 with 44 mothers, using the Primary Care Assessment Tool to collect data. Data were analyzed by calculating the Essential Primary Health Care and General Primary Health Care scores. RESULTS: mothers recognized and experienced aspects of accessibility, comprehensive care and coordination of care, as well as community guidance, marked by a concern and involvement on the part of the health team in the children's care, their families and community. CONCLUSION: The Primary Health Care team makes efforts to approach the community and meet their health needs, seeking instruments that aid the promotion of qualified care to children.

[The art of clown theater in care for hospitalized children]. / A arte do teatro clown no cuidado as crianças hospitalizadas.

Hospitalization can be a very traumatic experience for children and their family members. The purpose of this study was to explore the experience of using clown theater art in the care for hospitalized children, starting with an activity developed by undergraduate students in the healthcare area. Data were obtained by observing 20 children and 11 students, characters in the clown theater interacting in the pediatric clinic in a school hospital in the state of São Paulo. The empirical data were analyzed with the thematic content analysis, which were grouped around the following themes: artistic expressions as a form of communication, participation of the binomial child and accompanying partner, and the clown as a therapeutic resource. The results show that this experience was a concrete intervention, emphasizing the children's development process, since it opens up a space for fantasy, laughter, happiness and the appropriation of the hospital routine; it is an example of widening the diagnostic and therapeutic process with the incorporation of intervention focusing on the affective, emotional and cultural necessities of the child and the family, in the search for non-traumatic care.

[Music as a resource in care for hospitalized children: a possible intervention?]. / A música como recurso no cuidado à criança hospitalizada: uma intervenção possível?

This bibliographic study involved the Medline and LILACS databases as well as non-systematized searches and covered the period from 1994 to 2004. We aimed to analyze the bibliographic production on pediatric nursing and music, in order to identify current knowledge in this area. Our analysis revealed 3 units of meaning: the setting, interventions and repercussions. The results disclose the benefits music can offer to hospitalized children, their family members and health teams. We observed that music can be used in hospitals as a low-cost, nonpharmacological and noninvasive intervention, promoting development processes with a view to the health of children, families and workers.