The Mental Health Effects of a Mindfulness App in Parents of a Child With Medical Complexity

The number of children with special health care needs (CSHCN) in the US is nearly 20% of children representing approximately 14.6 million children nationally. A subgroup of CSHCN are children who have the most intensive healthcare needs known as children with a medical complexity (CMC). Parents of CMC experience many challenges. In addition to typical caregiver tasks, parents of a CMC may experience added stress and are more likely to experience higher rates of anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder than parents of healthy children. This project aims to explore the acceptability and feasibility of a mindfulness mobile application for parents of a CMC as well as determine the effectiveness of mindfulness application use on stress, depression, and family management in parents of a CMC. Forty-five participants will be recruited and given access to a mindfulness application and instructed to use it at least 4 days a week for at least 10 minutes. Parents will fill out questionnaires on app usage, as well as stress, depression, and family management. This work will be accomplished through a pilot single arm approach.