Engaging youth in the design of prescription opioid safety education for schools

Abraham, Olufunmilola; Szela, Lisa; Brasel, Kelsey; Hoernke, Margaret

doi:10.1016/j.japh.2021.10.016

Cited by 6 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 48 publications

(23 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Previous work by the study team has focused on the development of MedSMARxT wherein community-based participatory research was used to elucidate adolescent knowledge gaps and preferences for education on medication safety [ 39 ]. Adolescents most frequently reported web searches, parents, health care providers, and web-based videos as resources for medication safety information, which highlights the integral position of parents and health care professionals such as pharmacists in ensuring appropriate and correct education for adolescents [ 39 ]. In prior studies on adolescent receptiveness to using educational games to improve medication knowledge, nearly 80% of adolescent participants indicated they would be receptive to using an educational game [ 40 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Parents’ Perceptions of a Serious Game for Educating Families on Prescription Opioid Safety: Qualitative Pilot Study of MedSMARxT: Adventures in PharmaCity

Abraham,

Nixon,

Seitz

2023

JMIR Serious Games

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Opioid misuse is a pervasive, worsening problem that affects the health of people throughout the United States, including adolescents. There are few adolescent-focused interventions designed to educate them about opioid medication safety. The MedSMARxT: Adventures in PharmaCity, is a serious educational video game that teaches parents and their youths about safe opioid practices. Objective This study aimed to elucidate parent’s perceptions of MedSMARxT: Adventures in PharmaCity and its potential use by parents and their adolescents. Methods Parents of adolescents aged 12 to 18 years who live in the United States were recruited from April to October 2021 via Qualtrics research panels, social media, email listserves, and snowball sampling. The study participants played MedSMARxT: Adventures in PharmaCity for 30 minutes and then participated in a 30-minute postgame interview via WebEx (Cisco). Questions were developed and piloted to examine adults’ perceptions of the game. Participants were asked three sets of open-ended questions: (1) questions about the game and elements of the game, (2) what they learned from the game, and (3) questions about their experience with games. Audio recordings were transcribed verbatim. Interview transcripts were coded using content and thematic analysis by study team members to identify major themes and subthemes from the data. Results Parent participants (N=67) played MedSMARxT: Adventures in PharmaCity and completed a postgame interview. Analysis extrapolated four primary themes from the data: (1) participant gaming experience, (2) perception of game features, (3) educational purpose of the game, and (4) future use of the game. Most participants (n=56, 84%), had at least some experience with video games. More than half of the participants (n=35, 52%) participants, had positive reactions to the game characters and scenes depicted in MedSMARxT: Adventures in PharmaCity and stated they were realistic for adolescents. Most participants (n=39, 58%), would recommend the game to others. Significant difficulties with gameplay navigation were reported by 38 (57%) participants, as well as a slow game pace. All participants were able to accurately identify the overarching goal of the game: opioid or medication safety. The game reinforced existing knowledge for participants, though many (n=15, 22%), reported a new awareness of the need to store opioid medications in a locked area and the availability of medication disposal drop boxes at pharmacies. Participants stated that they would recommend the game for future use by families and youths in various health care and non–health care settings. Conclusions The use of a tailored serious game is a novel, engaging tool to educate adolescents on opioid safety. MedSMARxT: Adventures in PharmaCity can be used as a tool for parents and adolescents to facilitate meaningful dialogue about safe and appropriate opioid use.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Parents’ Perceptions of a Serious Game for Educating Families on Prescription Opioid Safety: Qualitative Pilot Study of MedSMARxT: Adventures in PharmaCity

Abraham,

Nixon,

Seitz

2023

JMIR Serious Games

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Most youth reported the levels to be realistic, appropriate for the adolescent demographic, and that the learning objectives were achievable and salient. 20 After initial refinements to the prototype, it was ready for rigorous evaluation in terms of efficacy and feedback among key stakeholders.…”

Section: Evaluating the Game Prototypementioning

confidence: 99%

An Overview of the CRoME Lab’s MedSMA℞T Families Intervention for Promoting Opioid Medication Safety among Adolescents and Parents

Abraham,

McCarthy

2023

Innov Pharm

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

As the opioid epidemic unrelentingly places profound weight on pharmacists, youth, parents, and the nation at large, innovative interventions are critical to prevent potential misuse and untimely death. Adolescents are especially vulnerable to misuse behaviors due to knowledge, attitudinal, and social influences. To best resonate with adolescents, appropriate tools and technologies must be developed and deployed. Few educational tools are more ubiquitous to adolescents than video games. Video games, specifically serious games, have the potential to connect with adolescents and impart critical knowledge related to opioid safety. Engaging youth, parents, and pharmacists in the design, refinement, and evaluation of a serious game is novel and necessary for building a robust, efficacious game. This commentary describes the conceptualization, inception, development, and evaluation of a novel opioid medication safety intervention, MedSMA℞T Families. This two-part intervention is comprised of an adolescent-tailored serious game entitled MedSMA℞T: Adventures in PharmaCity, and a family-focused tool named the personalized Family Medication Safety Plan. This intervention is the first theory-based, family-focused opioid medication safety toolkit co-designed by an interdisciplinary team of researchers, game developers, behavioral health scientists, pharmacists, student pharmacists, addiction medicine physician, adolescent health physician, parents, and teens. Responses from key stakeholders (pharmacists, parents, and teens) have demonstrated positive attitudes and impressions towards both components of the MedSMA℞T Families intervention. Empirical evidence of efficacy from two separate studies denotes improvement in key concepts related to safe behavior in adolescents. Findings to date support the widespread use, implementation, and dissemination of this efficacious intervention to supporting safe opioid prescription practices in families with adolescents. In this paper, we outline and summarize our process of intervention development and use of longitudinal data to validate each step of our process. Future directions include mobile compatibility, refinement based on key stakeholder feedback, and dissemination in various clinical settings where opioid medications are prescribed and dispensed such as emergency departments, pharmacies, hospitals, and clinics.

show abstract

“…After engaging with adolescents and young adults (AYAs), the study team utilized their perspectives to create MedSMA T: Adventures in PharmaCity. Initial playtests engaged AYAs to refine the game's prototype, demonstrating the salience of game objectives and early acceptance of this intervention in terms of design features and realism [36,37]. Further evaluation with a national sample of youth demonstrated that MedSMA T can improve adolescents' opioid knowledge, prescription disposal knowledge, behavioral intent, and self-efficacy related to opioid safety behaviors [38].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

MedSMA℞T Adventures in PharmaCity Game: Youth Experiences and Recommendation for Use in Opioid Safety Education

Abraham,

Koeberl,

McCarthy

2023

Pharmacy

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Adolescents are often excluded from the creation of opioid safety interventions; therefore, it is crucial to design evidence-based interventions tailored for and with youth. Video games are ubiquitous and approachable to adolescents making them an accessible educational modality. MedSMA℞T: Adventures in PharmaCity is a serious game that educates adolescents and their families on the safe, appropriate, and responsible use of opioid prescriptions. The first objective of the study was to elucidate adolescents’ experiences and perceptions of the game. The second objective was to elicit their recommendations for use and suggestions for improvement. Adolescents were recruited through Qualtrics research panels, social media, listservs, and snowball sampling. Recruitment occurred between April 2021 and October 2021. Eligible adolescents played the game and completed a follow-up virtual semi-structured interview with a study team member. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and uploaded to NVivo for data analysis. A thematic content analysis was performed. A total of seventy-two adolescents participated. Analysis yielded four themes: prior gaming experience, educational salience, game design impressions, and recommendations for improvement. Most adolescents approached MedSMA℞T with prior gaming experience. The youth correctly identified the game’s intended objective: the promotion of opioid medication safety. Adolescents had overarchingly positive impressions of the game’s levels, characters, and graphics. Study participants suggested expanded game levels, improved controls, and more instructions for gameplay. In summary, adolescents had favorable experiences using the MedSMA℞T game which allude to the wide-spread acceptability of this intervention among young people.

show abstract

Engaging youth in the design of prescription opioid safety education for schools

Cited by 6 publications

References 48 publications

Parents’ Perceptions of a Serious Game for Educating Families on Prescription Opioid Safety: Qualitative Pilot Study of MedSMARxT: Adventures in PharmaCity

Parents’ Perceptions of a Serious Game for Educating Families on Prescription Opioid Safety: Qualitative Pilot Study of MedSMARxT: Adventures in PharmaCity

An Overview of the CRoME Lab’s MedSMA℞T Families Intervention for Promoting Opioid Medication Safety among Adolescents and Parents

MedSMA℞T Adventures in PharmaCity Game: Youth Experiences and Recommendation for Use in Opioid Safety Education

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About