Teleaudiology: efficacy assessment of an online social network as a support tool for parents of children candidates for cochlear implant.

Purpose: To assess the efficacy of an online social network as a support for parents of children with hearing impairment.

Methods: Twenty-two mothers, randomly divided into experimental (n=11) and control (n=11) groups, filled in an online form containing the Parental Stress Index - Short Form (PSI-SF). Only the experimental group had access to the "Babies' Portal" social network. Both groups filled in the online form once again 3 months after the first assessment, for evaluating the use and participation in the social network. The posts on the social network were rated by two independent raters regarding themes and mechanisms of self-help.

Results: No difference was observed in mean PSI-SF scores between the groups for both assessments. Intragroup analysis showed no difference for total and subscale results of PSI-SF between the two data collected for both groups except for the "Defensive Response" subscale, in which a decrease was observed in the score for the control group. The most frequent posting themes were related to personal information and expressions of religious beliefs. Regarding self-help mechanisms, a higher frequency of exchanging experiences and gratitude expressions was observed. Participants in the experimental group stated they would have liked to participate more frequently in the social network as they considered this tool important because of the exchange of information and experience with other mothers and hearing health-care professionals.

Conclusion: The posts and the assessment of participants indicated the potential of this network to support parents of children with hearing impairment.