The Development of Age-Based Food Allergy Educational Handouts for Caregivers and Patients-A Work Group Report of the AAAAI Adverse Reactions to Foods Committee

Jennifer S. LeBovidge, Division of Immunology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Mass; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass. Electronic address: Jennifer.LeBovidge@childrens.harvard.edu.
Linda J. Herbert, Division of Allergy and Immunology, Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC; Department of Pediatrics, George Washington University School of Medicine, Washington, DC.
Ashley Ramos, Division of Allergy and Immunology, Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC; Department of Pediatrics, George Washington University School of Medicine, Washington, DC.
Nancy Rotter, Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass; Department of Pediatrics, Food Allergy Center, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Boston, Mass.
Scott H. Sicherer, Division of Allergy and Immunology, Elliot and Roslyn Jaffe Food Allergy Institute, Kravis Children's Hospital, New York, NY; Department of Pediatrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY.
Michael C. Young, Division of Immunology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Mass; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass.
Michael Pistiner, Department of Pediatrics, Food Allergy Center, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Boston, Mass; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass.
Wanda Phipatanakul, Division of Immunology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Mass; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass.
Lisa M. Bartnikas, Division of Immunology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Mass; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass.
Theresa A. Bingemann, Division of Allergy, Immunology and Rheumatology and Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY; Division of Allergy, Immunology and Rheumatology and Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, NY.

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

8-24-2022

Journal

The journal of allergy and clinical immunology. In practice

DOI

10.1016/j.jaip.2022.01.048

Keywords

Adolescent; Caregivers; Child; Child development; Education; Food allergy; Infant; Parents; Patient; Quality of life

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Food allergy education is an ongoing process that must address unique safety concerns and psychosocial challenges at each developmental stage. Families require reliable information that is targeted to specific developmental stages to support the integration of food allergy management into daily life. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this project was to develop age-specific, evidence-based patient education handouts with practical recommendations for managing and coping with food allergies at different developmental stages. METHODS: Handout content was based on: (1) practice guidelines for food allergy management; (2) literature addressing psychosocial and educational needs of patients with food allergy and their caregivers; and (3) clinical experience of the project team. Fifty-seven caregivers of patients (aged 0-21 years) with food allergy and 2 young adults with food allergy reviewed a draft of the handouts and completed an online survey to assess handout acceptability and usability and identify areas for improvement. Handouts were revised based on participant feedback. RESULTS: The majority of participants (79%) rated the amount of information in the age-specific handouts as "just right," versus "not enough" (9%) or "too much" information (12%). Sixty-three percent reported that they would be "very likely" to use the handouts as a resource and 35% "somewhat likely." Almost all participants (88%-100% by item) agreed that the handouts used elements of plain language writing and clear communication. CONCLUSION: Caregivers rated the age-based food allergy education handouts as understandable and useful. We anticipate that these handouts could be used during health care visits and directly accessed online by families.

Department

Pediatrics

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