In healthcare, we often measure children’s health through clinical tests or scans. However, these don’t capture how children themselves experience their health and wellbeing. Paediatric Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (P-PROMs) fill this gap by letting children and their caregivers share their perspective on their health.
Currently, only six studies globally have explored the impact of using P-PROMs in routine clinical care. Most used a 23-question P-PROM called the ‘PedsQL’. Recent research suggests a shorter 5-question P-PROM, called the ‘EQ-5D-Y-5L’, might work better for Australian children. However, the impact of using the EQ-5D-Y-5L in routine clinical care is yet to be studied.
None of these previous studies involved children or their families in designing how P-PROMs would be implemented and used in clinical care. This oversight may limit the effectiveness of these programs. Evidence suggests that input from all key stakeholders, including patient consumers, is essential for setting a program up for success.
Our project, the P-PROM ROCK study, aims to change this by:
- Co-designing the P-PROM ROCK Program, using the EQ-5D-Y-5L, with patients, caregivers and providers, and
- Piloting and evaluating the co-designed P-PROM ROCK Program in clinical paediatric outpatient care.
This innovative approach will help put children’s voices at the centre of both healthcare design and delivery, potentially transforming how we provide and evaluate paediatric care.
