A Short Digital Intervention for Youth Undergoing Major Surgery and Their Parents

Pediatric Perioperative Pain Intervention (POPI): A Pilot Feasibility Study of a Psychoeducational Digital Single-Session Intervention

The perioperative time, i.e., the time before, during, and directly after surgery, can be stressful for families whose child needs to undergo major orthopedic surgery. Families have expressed their need for more and easily accessible information on what to expect before and after surgery, and how to deal with postoperative pain.

Single-session interventions are short interventions, often digital, that are scalable and present as a low-threshold approach for psychoeducational purposes. Previous studies have demonstrated good feasibility and acceptability of single-session interventions for psychosocial problems such as perioperative anxiety among families.

Therefore, in this pilot study, the investigators will test a newly developed digital single-session intervention for youth undergoing major orthopedic surgery and their parents. The intervention will provide pain education, general and individual resources, and a special module for parents on how they can best support their children. In this study, the investigators will evaluate if participants use the digital intervention, if they perceive the content as useful and the format as engaging, and whether there are aspects that need to be added or changed.

Inclusion Criteria:

• the patient is between 8 and 18 years of age;
• the patient has a scheduled orthopedic surgery requiring inpatient care for at least one night at one of the participating hospitals;
• the patient and at least one parent/caregiver are able to read and understand German;
• both the patient and the parent/caregiver agree to participate in the study and to test the digital single-session intervention.

Exclusion Criteria:

• the patient has a serious comorbid medical condition that may substantially affect perioperative recovery or study participation (e.g., cancer, severe neurological impairment, chronic illness requiring daily medication);
• the patient has undergone previous major orthopedic surgery (e.g., prior spine surgery);
• the patient or caregiver is unable to follow study procedures due to cognitive, psychological, or language-related difficulties;
• either the patient or one of the parents/caregivers declines participation in the study or declines testing of the intervention.