School of Psychology & Public Health, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia.
Judith Lumley Centre, School of Nursing and Midwifery, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia.
PLoS One. 2023 Mar 16;18(3):e0272101. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0272101. eCollection 2023.
Early relational health is a key determinant of childhood development, while relational trauma in the parent-infant dyad can instigate a cascading pattern of infant risk. Fortunately, early relational trauma is detectable and modifiable. In 2018, Australian Maternal and Child Health (MCH) nurses participated in MERTIL (My Early Relational Trauma-Informed Learning), a program to identify and prevent relational trauma. Program evaluations revealed nurses felt competent and confident to identify and respond to relational trauma; however, response capacity was inhibited by inadequate parent referral options. In response, MERTIL for Parents (My Early Relational Trust-Informed Learning) was developed, which is an online, evidence-based, self-paced parenting program that focuses on enhancing parental knowledge of relational trust and its significance for infant development. This low-cost, accessible prevention resource targets emerging relational concerns to reduce later service system engagement. The potential for universal preventative online programs that target parental and relational wellbeing remains under-explored. This paper reports on a protocol for implementing a MERTIL for Parents pilot study describing practitioners' and parents' perspectives on program feasibility and efficacy.
This study is a mixed methods, parallel armed, uncontrolled, repeated measures design. We aim to recruit 48 Australian MCH practitioners from the states of Victoria and New South Wales. These professionals will in turn recruit 480 parents with a child aged 0-5 years. All parents will receive MERTIL for Parents, which entails a 40-minute video, tipsheets, posters, and support resources. Parent data will be obtained at three periods: pre-program, program exit, and program follow-up. Practitioner data will be collected at two periods: pre-parent recruitment and program follow-up. Data collection will occur through surveys and focus groups. Primary parent outcomes will be socioemotional assessments of program efficacy. Practitioners and parents will each report on program feasibility.
This protocol describes the feasibility and efficacy of a new online parenting program, MERTIL for Parents, with pilot field studies commencing in March 2023. We anticipate that this resource will be a valuable addition to various child and family services, for use in individual support and group work.
早期的关系健康是儿童发展的关键决定因素，而父母-婴儿关系中的关系创伤会引发一连串的婴儿风险。幸运的是，早期的关系创伤是可以检测和改变的。2018 年，澳大利亚母婴健康（MCH）护士参加了 MERTIL（我的早期关系创伤知情学习），这是一个旨在识别和预防关系创伤的项目。项目评估显示，护士们感到有能力和信心识别和应对关系创伤；然而，由于父母转诊选择不足，反应能力受到限制。作为回应，开发了 MERTIL for Parents（我的早期关系信任知情学习），这是一个在线的、基于证据的、自我 paced 的育儿计划，重点是增强父母对关系信任及其对婴儿发展意义的知识。这种低成本、可及的预防资源针对新兴的关系问题，旨在减少后期服务系统的参与。针对父母和关系幸福感的普遍预防性在线计划的潜力仍未得到充分探索。本文报告了实施 MERTIL for Parents 试点研究的方案，描述了从业者和家长对计划可行性和效果的看法。
这是一项混合方法、平行武装、非对照、重复测量设计。我们的目标是从维多利亚州和新南威尔士州招募 48 名澳大利亚母婴健康从业者。这些专业人员将反过来招募 480 名 0-5 岁儿童的家长。所有家长都将接受 MERTIL for Parents，其中包括一个 40 分钟的视频、提示表、海报和支持资源。家长数据将在三个时期收集：项目前、项目退出和项目随访。从业者数据将在两个时期收集：父母招募前和项目随访。数据收集将通过调查和焦点小组进行。主要的家长结果将是项目效果的社会情感评估。从业者和家长将分别报告计划的可行性。
本方案描述了一种新的在线育儿计划 MERTIL for Parents 的可行性和效果，该计划的试点现场研究将于 2023 年 3 月开始。我们预计，该资源将是各种儿童和家庭服务的宝贵补充，可用于个人支持和小组工作。
