A rapid-cycle evaluation and adjustment of paediatric tonsillectomy primary caregiver education: Qualitative research in implementation science

Background

Tonsillectomies are generally performed on paediatric patients in ambulatory settings. The children are discharged after a short post-operative period of three to four hours which results in their parents becoming the primary caregivers at home. It is imperative that they receive extensive preparation and guidance on how to prevent, identify and manage complications related to the surgery at home. In this study, rapid-cycle evaluation and adjustment in combination with qualitative research in implementation science were used to show how health education can be revised during implementation.

Aim

The study aimed to evaluate and adjust the paediatric tonsillectomy primary caregiver health education at a designated ambulatory hospital.

Design

A rapid cycle evaluation and adjustment of paediatric tonsillectomy health education was done through qualitative research in implementation science. It was guided by the contextual and interventional facilitators and barriers of the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research. Two rounds of semi-structured interviews were conducted with parents as the primary caregivers of children and nurses who was directly involved with the health education.

Results

The process of evaluation and adjustment provided the researcher with valuable information that were applied to create a more compressive piece of primary carer health education. A guideline was created with current information to manage pain, eating practices and to limit post-operative haemorrhaging.

Conclusion

Rapid-cycle evaluation and adjustment in combination with qualitative research in implementation science is effective to revise health education processes and material.