Systematic review of psychosocial needs assessment tools for caregivers of paediatric patients with dermatological conditions

Objective: To identify validated dermatology-specific and disease-specific psychosocial needs assessment tools for caregivers of paediatric patients with dermatological conditions. A secondary objective was to assess the adequacy of their measurement properties. Design: Systematic review. Data sources: EMBASE, PsycINFO, MEDLINE (in Ovid SP), Cochrane, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health EBSCO, U Search and Web of Science were searched (2000–5 October 2021). Grey literature, bibliographies, online databases of QoL tools and several trial registers were searched (2000–5 Oct 2021). Eligibility criteria: Eligible studies involved adult caregivers caring for a child (no age limit) with any form of any skin condition. Predetermined exclusion criteria, as per protocol, were applied to the search results. Data abstraction and synthesis: Title, abstract, full-text screening and data abstraction (standardised forms) were done independently in duplicate. Both’s predefined methodological criteria assessed risk of bias. Narrative synthesis was used to present the findings. Results: 187 full-text articles were examined from a total of 8979 records. Most tools were generic QoL tools, relevant to spouse/partner or based on their child’s perception of the disease or assessed patients’ quality of life. Following quality appraisal, 26 articles were identified, and 11 tools (1 dermatology-specific and 10 disease-specific) were included. Information outcome domains were provided for each tool (study specific, questionnaire specific, adequacy of measurement properties and risk of bias). No literature was found pertaining to the use of these tools within healthcare settings and/or as e-tools. Discussion: With limited evidence supporting the quality of their methodological and measurement properties, this review will inform future dermatological Core Outcome Set development and improve evidence-based clinical decisions. Increasing demand on limited healthcare resources justifies the codevelopment of an accessible solution-focused psychosocial needs assessment e-tool to promote caregiver health outcomes. PROSPERO registration number: PROSPERO (CRD42019159956).