TY - JOUR AU - Lindsay, Sally AU - Cagliostro, Elaine AU - Stinson, Jennifer AU - Leck, Joanne PY - 2019 DA - 2019/04/24 TI - A 4-Week Electronic-Mentoring Employment Intervention for Youth With Physical Disabilities: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial JO - JMIR Pediatr Parent SP - e12653 VL - 2 IS - 1 KW - social support KW - mentor KW - youth KW - rehabilitation KW - occupational therapy AB - Background: Youth with disabilities are more likely to live in poverty and be unemployed compared with youth without disabilities. Such trends are often a result of a lack of support, inaccessible jobs, environmental barriers, and discriminatory attitudes toward people with disabilities. Youth with disabilities also face barriers in accessing vocational preparation programs. One encouraging way that could help address challenges that youth encounter is by providing support through electronic mentoring (e-mentoring). Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the feasibility of a 4-week Web-based peer e-mentoring employment intervention for youth with physical disabilities. Methods: We conducted a pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) to evaluate our intervention, Empowering youth towards employment. Participants included youth aged 15 to 25 years who were randomly assigned to an experimental (mentored) or control (nonmentored) group. Our intervention involved having trained youth mentors (ie, near peers who also had a disability) lead Web-based discussion forums while offering peer support and resources, which involved 12 modules (3 topics a week for 4 weeks). Primary outcomes focused on implementation (ie, feasibility and acceptability), whereas secondary outcomes focused on effectiveness (ie, measures of self-determination, career maturity, and social support). Results: A total of 28 youth (mean age 19.62, SD 3.53; 14/28, 50% female) completed the RCT in 3 intervention groups and 2 control groups (intervention n=18, control n=10). Participants reported satisfaction with the program and that it was feasible and acceptable. Youth’s mean engagement level with the program was 6.44 (SD 2.33) for the experimental group and 5.56 (SD 3.53) for controls. Participants in the intervention group did not demonstrate any significant improvements in social support, career maturity, or self-determination compared with those in the control group. No adverse events were reported. Conclusions: The Empowering youth towards employment e-mentoring intervention needs further testing with a larger sample and different length of formats to understand how it may have an impact on employment outcomes for youth with disabilities. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02522507; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02522507 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/77a3T4qrE) UR - http://pediatrics.jmir.org/2019/1/e12653/ UR - https://doi.org/10.2196/12653 DO - 10.2196/12653 ID - info:doi/10.2196/12653 ER - TY - JOUR AU - Chu, Yuan-Chia AU - Cheng, Yen-Fu AU - Lai, Ying-Hui AU - Tsao, Yu AU - Tu, Tzong-Yang AU - Young, Shuenn Tsong AU - Chen, Tzer-Shyong AU - Chung, Yu-Fang AU - Lai, Feipei AU - Liao, Wen-Huei PY - 2019 DA - 2019/04/01 TI - A Mobile Phone–Based Approach for Hearing Screening of School-Age Children: Cross-Sectional Validation Study JO - JMIR Mhealth Uhealth SP - e12033 VL - 7 IS - 4 KW - hearing tests KW - telemedicine KW - mobile apps KW - audiometry, pure-tone AB - Background: Pure-tone screening (PTS) is considered as the gold standard for hearing screening programs in school-age children. Mobile devices, such as mobile phones, have the potential for audiometric testing. Objective: This study aimed to demonstrate a new approach to rapidly screen hearing status and provide stratified test values, using a smartphone-based hearing screening app, for each screened ear of school-age children. Method: This was a prospective cohort study design. The proposed smartphone-based screening method and a standard sound-treated booth with PTS were used to assess 85 school-age children (170 ears). Sound-treated PTS involved applying 4 test tones to each tested ear: 500 Hz at 25 dB and 1000 Hz, 2000 Hz, and 4000 Hz at 20 dB. The results were classified as pass (normal hearing in the ear) or fail (possible hearing impairment). The proposed smartphone-based screening employs 20 stratified hearing scales. Thresholds were compared with those of pure-tone average (PTA). Results: A total of 85 subjects (170 ears), including 38 males and 47 females, aged between 11 and 12 years with a mean (SD) of 11 (0.5) years, participated in the trial. Both screening methods produced comparable pass and fail results (pass in 168 ears and fail in 2 ears). The smartphone-based screening detected moderate or worse hearing loss (average PTA>25 dB) accurately. Both the sensitivity and specificity of the smartphone-based screening method were calculated at 100%. Conclusions: The results of the proposed smartphone-based self-hearing test demonstrated high concordance with conventional PTS in a sound-treated booth. Our results suggested the potential use of the proposed smartphone-based hearing screening in a school-age population. UR - https://mhealth.jmir.org/2019/4/e12033/ UR - https://doi.org/10.2196/12033 UR - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30932870 DO - 10.2196/12033 ID - info:doi/10.2196/12033 ER - TY - JOUR AU - Lindsay, Sally AU - Cagliostro, Elaine AU - Leck, Joanne AU - Stinson, Jennifer PY - 2019 DA - 2019/03/29 TI - A 12-Week Electronic Mentoring Employment Preparation Intervention for Youth With Physical Disabilities: Pilot Feasibility Randomized Controlled Trial JO - JMIR Pediatr Parent SP - e12088 VL - 2 IS - 1 KW - social support KW - mentor KW - employment KW - youth KW - disabled persons KW - rehabilitation KW - occupational therapy AB - Background: Youth with disabilities are at high risk of unemployment compared with youth without disabilities. They often encounter challenges in accessing vocational programs that meet their needs. One promising approach that could help to address barriers that youth encounter while also enhancing social support is through electronic mentoring (e-mentoring). Although there is an increase in e-mentoring for youth with disabilities, little is known about its impact for youth with physical disabilities. Objective: This study aimed to assess the acceptability and initial impact of a Web-based peer electronic mentor employment intervention for youth with physical disabilities. Methods: The Empowering Youth Towards Employment intervention was evaluated using a pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT). Youth, aged 15-21 years, with physical disabilities were randomly assigned to an intervention (ie, mentored) or control (ie, not mentored) group. Trained mentors (ie, near peers) with a physical disability led the online discussion forums and provided peer support and resources for 12 modules (1 topic per week over 12 weeks). Primary outcomes focused on self-determination, career maturity, and social support. We also explored program adherence and dosage, participant satisfaction, and areas for improvement. Results: A total of 13 youth (mean age 17.3 years, SD 1.88; 54%, 7/13 female) completed the RCT. In the intervention group (n=9), 56% (5/9) of the youth were females, and in the control group (n=4), 50% (2/4) of the youth were female. Participants reported satisfaction with the program and that it was feasible and acceptable. Participants’ mean engagement level with the program was 5.22 (SD 2.48) for the intervention group and 5.40 (SD 4.56) for controls. Participants in the intervention group demonstrated significant improvements in self-determination (t12=2.49; P<.04) compared with the control group. No adverse events were reported. Conclusions: The Empowering Youth Towards Employment is a promising intervention that enhances self-determination among youth with physical disabilities. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02522507; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02522507 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6uD58Pvjc) International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID): RR2-10.2196/resprot.8034 UR - http://pediatrics.jmir.org/2019/1/e12088/ UR - https://doi.org/10.2196/12088 DO - 10.2196/12088 ID - info:doi/10.2196/12088 ER - TY - JOUR AU - Cross, Andrea AU - Rosenbaum, Peter AU - Grahovac, Danijela AU - Brocklehurst, Julie AU - Kay, Diane AU - Baptiste, Sue AU - Gorter, Jan Willem PY - 2018 DA - 2018/12/21 TI - A Web-Based Knowledge Translation Resource for Families and Service Providers (The “F-Words” in Childhood Disability Knowledge Hub): Developmental and Pilot Evaluation Study JO - JMIR Rehabil Assist Technol SP - e10439 VL - 5 IS - 2 KW - childhood disability KW - F-words KW - ICF KW - Knowledge Hub KW - knowledge-to-action framework KW - knowledge translation KW - Web-based resource AB - Background: The “F-words in Childhood Disability” (Function, Family, Fitness, Fun, Friends, and Future) are an adaptation and an attempt to operationalize the World Health Organization’s (2001) International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) framework. Since the paper was published (November 2011), the “F-words” have attracted global attention (>12,000 downloads, January 2018). Internationally, people have adopted the “F-words” ideas, and many families and service providers have expressed a need for more information, tools, and resources on the “F-words”. Objective: This paper reports on the development and pilot evaluation of a Web-based knowledge translation (KT) resource, the “F-words” Knowledge Hub that was created to inform people about the “F-words” and to provide action-oriented tools to support the use of the “F-words” in practice. Methods: An integrated research team of families and researchers at CanChild Centre for Childhood Disability Research collaborated to develop, implement, and evaluate the Knowledge Hub. A pilot study design was chosen to assess the usability and utility of the Web-based hub before implementing a larger evaluation study. Data were collected using a brief anonymous Web-based survey that included both closed-ended and open-ended questions, with the closed-ended responses being based on a five-point Likert-type scale. We used descriptive statistics and a summary of key themes to report findings. Results: From August to November 2017, the Knowledge Hub received >6,800 unique visitors. In 1 month (November 2017), 87 people completed the survey, of whom 63 completed the full survey and 24 completed 1 or 2 sections. The respondents included 42 clinicians and 30 family members or individuals with a disability. The majority of people visited the Knowledge Hub 1-5 times (n=63) and spent up to 45 minutes exploring (n=61) before providing feedback. Overall, 66 people provided information on the perceived usefulness of the Knowledge Hub, of which 92% (61/66) found the Knowledge Hub user-friendly and stated that they enjoyed exploring the hub, and a majority (n=52) reported that the Knowledge Hub would influence what they did when working with others. From the open-ended responses (n=48), the “F-words” videos (n=21) and the “F-words” tools (n=15) were rated as the best features on the Knowledge Hub. Conclusions: The “F-words” Knowledge Hub is an evidence-informed Web-based KT resource that was useful for respondents, most of whom were seen as “early adopters” of the “F-words” concepts. Based on the findings, minor changes are to be made to improve the Knowledge Hub before completing a larger evaluation study on the impact at the family, clinician, and organizational levels with a wider group of users. Our hope is that the “F-words” Knowledge Hub will become a go-to resource for knowledge sharing and exchange for families and service providers. UR - http://rehab.jmir.org/2018/2/e10439/ UR - https://doi.org/10.2196/10439 UR - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30578233 DO - 10.2196/10439 ID - info:doi/10.2196/10439 ER -