title: Social connectedness through ICT and the influence on wellbeing: the case of the CareRabbit.
abstract: The CareRabbit has been introduced as a technological innovation in the care for children, enabling family and friends to stay in touch while the child is hospitalized. This study addresses influence of this innovation on the wellbeing of the children, and uses the validated KINDL questionnaire, eliciting information from children and parents at the end of hospitalization. A baseline and an experimental measurement are compared. The children in the CareRabbit group scored slightly higher on the KINDL questionnaire than children in the control group. For young children (age 4-7) the difference was large. Initial findings indicate that CareRabbit has a positive influence on wellbeing, although sample size and measured differences limit the support for this conclusion. The measured difference suggests that CareRabbit may be more valuable for younger children.
authors: Department of Health Technology and Services Research, University of Twente, The Netherlands.
authors: Sanne R
authors: SR
authors: Blom
authors: Magda M
authors: MM
authors: Boere-Boonekamp
authors: Robert A
authors: RA
authors: Stegwee
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002673:Child, Hospitalized / Q000523:psychology; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003142:Communication; D004059:Diffusion of Innovation; D004867:Equipment Design; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010290:Parents; D012944:Social Support; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013672:Technology