{
  "abstract": "Disorders of the gut-brain interaction (DGBI) occur due to a bidirectional communication impairment between the gut and the brain. DGBI’s are common in paediatric populations and can result in difficult clinical experiences for children and young people due to the complexities associated with diagnosis and management. The mechanisms which result in a DGBI diagnosis are unfortunately not routinely well defined, which can result in frustration and confusion for children and families. Moreover, DGBIs can be associated with significant functional impairment, decreased physical inactivity, reduced school attendance, and result in lower quality of life.Given these challenges, the Paediatric Gastroenterology Psychology Service created and delivered a workshop to support young people managing their DGBI. The one-day workshop was based on principles from Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to support their understanding of DGBI as well as empower them to live well alongside their symptoms. To consolidate learning, attendees were also given workbooks with the workshop content and space to complete exercises. Additionally, there was also a follow up webinar which informed parents of the skills and strategies discussed to support their child to apply the psychological interventions.Three workshops ran from August to October 2024, with 16 participants aged 8 - 17 split into either the primary aged workshop or senior school aged workshop, respectively. All attendees completed feedback on the workshop using a Likert rating scale alongside free-text comments which were analysed using content analysis. Feedback forms were adjusted to be age appropriate. Prior to the workshop and at one-month follow up, attendees were asked to complete the Wellbeing and Health Experiences Evaluation Log (WHEEL).On average, the senior school attendees (n=11) rated finding it useful to find out more about the gut brain interaction as 8/10; learning about stress and strategies to manage as 8.8/10; the workshop helped them to understand more about their symptoms and how to manage as 8.6/10; enjoyment of the workshop at 8.5/10; and likelihood of recommending the workshop to other young people with a similar diagnosis as 8.5/10 (where 1 is ‘not at all’ and 10 is ‘very much’). Similar patterns of agreement were seen across the primary school attendees (n=4).Themes from the qualitative feedback demonstrated the importance young people place on connecting with other young people who have similar DGBI experiences: ‘I have learnt I’m not alone’. They described the benefit of learning strategies they can apply to their symptoms: ‘The CBT formulation helped me understand myself’. This resulted in them taking away messages of validation and empowerment: ‘I have learned that my feelings and experiences because of DGBI are valid so I can be kinder to myself’.Following the workshop, young people and their parents reported increased understanding of the gut brain relationship and found it helpful to understand various strategies to manage their symptoms. In addition, meeting other young people with similar presentations reduced feelings of isolation, which warrants further investigation on the impact on feelings of shame and stigma around gastroenterology symptoms.",
  "authors": [
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "St Georges Hospital, London"
      ],
      "name": "Holly Tallentire"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "St Georges Hospital, London"
      ],
      "name": "Sophia Tierney"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "St Georges Hospital, London"
      ],
      "name": "Arijeta Reka"
    }
  ],
  "title": "OC15 Delivering a workshop to empower young people and their parents to improve understanding and management of the gut-brain interaction",
  "uid": "ca3e53ea-94c2-52cf-bf00-dba457bd84fd"
}