Feeding the Flame, One Day at a Time: Design and Acceptability of a Serious Game to Support Medication Adherence and Education for Pediatric Solid Organ Transplant Patients
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- The protocol lists: Mystic Wizard.
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Solid Organ Transplant. Basic parameters: 7 years — 14 years · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- Center list to be confirmed — check the primary protocol.
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
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Overview
Children and teenagers who receive a solid organ transplant (such as a kidney, liver, or heart) must take medications every day to keep their new organ healthy. Taking these medications correctly and on time is one of the most important parts of staying well after a transplant, but it can be hard for young patients to understand why this matters and to keep up with their routines. Doctors and nurses usually teach patients about their transplant through conversations, which may not always be engaging or easy for kids to remember. This study looks at a new way to help young transplant patients learn about their condition and their medications: an educational game played on a tablet. The purpose of the study is to find out what patients think of the game and how well it works for them. Researchers want to know whether young patients find the game acceptable and enjoyable, whether it is easy to use, whether it makes them feel motivated and capable, and how engaged they feel while playing. To do this, patients will play the tablet game and then share their experiences. After playing, they will take part in a small group interview where they talk about what they liked, what was confusing, and whether the game helped them understand their transplant and medications. They will also fill out short questionnaires about how easy the game was to use and how engaging it felt. The researchers' hypothesis is that pediatric solid organ transplant patients will find the educational tablet-based game acceptable, easy to use, and engaging, and that it will be a welcome and helpful tool for learning about their transplant care. The findings will help guide whether this kind of game could be used to support transplant education for children and teens.
Interventions
- Behavioral Mystic Wizard
Mystic Wizards is a tablet-based serious game intervention designed to support medication understanding, self-efficacy, and health engagement among pediatric solid organ transplant recipients. The game uses a narrative fantasy framework in which players assume the role of a young wizard entrusted with a "Legacy Flame" representing their transplanted organ. Daily medications are represented as "potions" required to maintain the strength and stability of the Flame. The intervention includes short
Primary outcome measures
- Determine the acceptability the tablet-based game among solid transplant patient. [Time frame: Immediately after intervention]
Secondary outcome measures (3)
- Evaluate the usability of the tablet-based game among solid transplant patient using System Usability Scale (SUS) [Time frame: Immediately after intervention]
- To assess participants' intrinsic motivation and psychological needs satisfaction (autonomy, competence, relatedness, presence) while using the intervention [Time frame: Immediately after intervention]
- To assess participants' overall engagement with the digital intervention [Time frame: Immediately after intervention]
Eligibility criteria
Inclusion criteria
- Between age 7-14
- History of solid organ transplantation
- Current admission in inpatient unit
- Able to understand and interact with a tablet-based game in English
Exclusion criteria
- Legal guardian not present to obtain consent
- Child with a significant neurological condition, or major developmental disability
- Child with active infection of the face or hand
- History of severe motion sickness
- Severe visual or motor impairment limiting gameplay participation
- Acute medical instability
- Major surgery within the last 48 hours
- Inability to understand English
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Healthy volunteers: No
Study design
- Allocation
- N/A
- Model
- Single group
- Masking
- Open label
- Primary purpose
- Supportive care
Study locations
Center list to be confirmed — check the primary protocol.
Identifiers
NCT: NCT07609303 · 87110