Educational Leaflets Aim To Help Families Manage Cope With Childhood Food Allergy

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Source/Disclosures Disclosures: LeBovidge reports no relevant financial disclosures. See the study for all relevant financial disclosures by the other authors.

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A Task Force of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology developed a set of pediatric food allergy educational brochures for caregivers and patients, including materials targeted to specific age groups. Parents and other stakeholders who reviewed these drafts praised their content and said they would be somewhat or very likely to use them to manage their child’s food allergy. The task force incorporated the reviewers’ constructive criticism, including the verbal nature of the brochures and the need for graphics, in creating the final drafts.

Pamphlets designed to educate families about food allergy received high ratings for clarity and usefulness from a sample of potential users, according to a study published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice. Developed by a Task Force of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology, these brochures could be used during health care visits and accessed by patients directly online as well, the researchers wrote. Courtesy of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. “Food allergy practice guidelines recommend that food allergy education should be an ongoing process,” Jennifer S. LeBovidge, PhD, a psychologist in the department of immunology at Boston Children’s Hospital and assistant professor of psychology in Medicine, told Healio Harvard School. According to the researchers, no current food allergy educational resource addresses the specific needs of caregivers and children at different stages of childhood development. Jennifer S. LeBovidge “Our team of allergists and psychologists from the AAAAI Psychosocial Impact of Food Allergies Task Force saw an unmet need for age-specific, evidence-based, practical resources to help families confidently navigate these transitions and gradually engage children in their own food allergy management. time to build their skills and their confidence,” LeBovidge said.

Prepare and review the brochure

The researchers prepared a draft of their leaflet ‘Essentials about food allergies for all ages’, as well as draft leaflets targeting specific age groups from infancy to young adults. These drafts were based on practice parameters, relevant published research and the clinical experience of the project team, which included five pediatric allergists and four pediatric psychologists with expertise in food allergy. The leaflets were written in plain language with the carer audience in mind, except for the leaflet for young adults, which was written for this age group. Participants consisted of 51 mothers, five fathers, and one grandmother with legal guardianship of children with food allergies, plus two young adults, aged 23 years, with food allergies. After reading the all-ages booklet and the most age-appropriate booklet for their circumstances, participants completed an online survey. According to the researchers, 81% of participants said the amount of information in the all-ages brochure was “just right,” and 79% said the same about the brochures for each age. However, 17% said the all-ages leaflet had ‘too much information’. Almost all caregivers reported that they were “somewhat likely” or “very likely” to use the leaflets in managing their child’s food allergy, and almost all agreed that the leaflets used simple language. Participants noted clear writing and organization, developmental context, emotional information, and comprehensive content as useful features. The researchers incorporated the participants’ constructive feedback — that the brochures made “sense” and should include graphics and white space — into updated drafts. Final handouts are available with the online version of the study. “A number of carers provided feedback on the important issue of teaching other carers about food allergy management, including suggesting that the leaflets might be useful to share with friends, extended family members, baby sitters and teachers,” LeBovidge said. .

Next steps

Doctors and other health professionals could use the pamphlets as a teaching tool during clinic visits to facilitate ongoing food allergy education tailored to each patient’s specific developmental stage, LeBovidge said. The brochures could also be provided as a resource for families as they integrate food allergy management into daily life, she continued, as doctors may choose to have hard copies available or share the link to online versions. However, the researchers warned that further work is needed to develop information leaflets for older children and teenagers, who are expected to play a greater role in managing their own food allergies. Since study participants were predominantly white, English-speaking, and highly educated with high incomes, the researchers plan to continue gathering feedback from a more diverse population. The researchers are now translating the brochures into Spanish and developing a brochure with a QR code that links directly to the online versions that could be posted in waiting areas or in doctor’s exam rooms.

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Jennifer S. LeBovidge, PhD, can be reached at [email protected]

Perspective

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Ruchi S. Gupta, MD, MPH We definitely need more educational information for patients and families that is easy to understand. Food allergy is complicated and the more brochures, videos and books we have to support them, the better! We need fun, engaging materials that families can use on a regular basis and also share with other caregivers. Ruchi S. Gupta, MD, MPH Mary Ann & J. Milburn Smith Senior Scientist in Child Health Research and Director of the Center for Food Allergy & Asthma Research, Institute for Public Health and Medicine, Northwestern University Professor of Pediatrics and Medicine, Northwestern Feinberg School of MedicineClinical Attending, Ann & Robert H Lurie Childrens Hospital of ChicagoAuthor, Food without fear and The experience of food allergy Disclosures: Gupta reports receiving research support from Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE), Genentech, Melchiorre Family Foundation, NIH, Sunshine Charitable Foundation, Thermo Fisher Scientific, UnitedHealth Group, and Walder Foundation . serves as a medical advisor/consultant for Aimmune LLC, AllerGenis LLC, FARE, Genentech, and Novartis. and owns ownership rights in Yobee Care Inc.

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