The experience of living with a chronic condition (CC) impacts adolescents' psychological and social adjustment and overall functioning. Considering the increased risk of psychosocial challenges among adolescents with CC, this study aimed to enhance our understanding of the psychological and social factors that impact their quality of life. It also compared the psychological and social variables among (a) adolescents with and without CC and (b) adolescents with CC who are and who are not victims of bullying. The results demonstrated that adolescents with CC showed more psychosocial difficulties than their peers, as they more frequently reported involvement in situations of violence, and demonstrated more difficulties at a psychological and emotional level. Further, being victims of bullying increased the psychosocial vulnerabilities of these adolescents. A better quality of life was associated with the following psychosocial factors: not being a victim of bullying or cyberbullying, having less anxiety and fewer depressive symptoms, liking school, receiving more support from family and friends, having better relationships with peers, and having fewer physical and psychological symptoms. These findings are significant for helping schools develop tools and strategies to address violence and support students with CC, who are at a higher risk of being involved in such situations and require a targeted response.

Students with Long-Term Conditions (LTCs) experience prolonged absences that can impact their school connectedness and belonging. Inclusive education policies in New Zealand advocate for equitable learning opportunities for students with disabilities. Students with LTCs are included under this purview, but responses to their unique learning and connectedness needs are not well articulated. Literature suggests the potential of technology to enable virtual connections to keep these students' continued presence and engagement in class (i.e., sustainable connections). Studies internationally and in New Zealand, argue that virtual connections with schools can enhance educational opportunities and a sense of belonging for students with LTCs. However, limited research is available on developing and nurturing such ongoing connections with schools. This article reports on a qualitative study investigating New Zealand stakeholder perspectives on the facilitators of virtual connection with schools for students with LTCs. Findings from a thematic analysis of 18 individual interviews with stakeholders highlighted six facilitators for virtually connecting these students with schools, indicating the need for a flexible approach tailored to students' needs, strong support systems and purposeful, safe and inclusive connection opportunities. The stakeholders indicated these facilitators as essential for the virtual school connections to be sustainable and enhance students with LTCs' presence, belonging and social connection in schools.

Lessons conducted in hospitals ensure school continuity for hospitalized children unable to attend regular school. Hospital-based school (HS) provides a tailored experience that ensures normality for children through education. The objective of this study is to evaluate the effects of the proposed lessons in reducing negative emotions, distress, and pain in children, as well as fostering positive affects. The study was conducted with 32 hospitalized children, aged 8-12 years, in the Onco-Hematology and Pediatric Unit of Meyer Children's Hospital IRCCS (Florence, Italy). Positive and negative emotions were measured using the Positive and Negative Affect Scale for Children; distress was measured using the Physiological Hyperarousal for Children; pain was measured using the Visual Analogue Scale for children. Variables were assessed before (T0) and after (T1) lessons, for three times; for each variable, collected data were averaged at both T0 and T1. Statistical analyses showed a significant increase in positive emotions in hospitalized children and a significant decrease in negative emotions, distress, and pain; nevertheless, only for pain the significant correlation between its scores before and after the HS lessons indicated that the detected change occurred for all participants in much the same way. These preliminary results suggest that HS lessons can promote hospitalized children's well-being, at least as far as pain reduction is concerned.

Despite high survival rates for many adolescent or young adult (AYA) cancer diagnoses, the psychosocial, academic, and vocational repercussions for survivors are profound and enduring. Hospital systems are able to address many AYA needs, but the ability to provide the human connectedness and knowledge that drive long-term school and career planning is lacking. This study assessed a group of AYAs who have or had cancer (n = 108, 54% female, 71% white, mean age 20.6 ± 4.4) to determine the school, career, medical, emotional, and psychosocial needs that are not currently being met by hospital staff and support networks. We identified the most common unmet needs of AYAs, differences between needs of AYAs in active treatment and survivorship, and the role of a career-focused mentoring program developed by the nonprofit organization Connecting Champions (CC) to address the array of unmet AYA needs. We found that the most commonly reported needs were all related to career and school, and that the top needs did not differ significantly throughout the cancer journey. These findings suggest that career and school-based needs are a high priority for AYAs, yet social isolation can make the necessary people or resources inaccessible. The CC mentoring program was reported as effective in attending to unmet needs (with an average score of 95.1/100) and can be a valuable resource for hospital systems, nonprofit organizations, and health insurers to provide personalized, career-focused support to AYAs during cancer treatment and survivorship.

For some children and young people (CYP) with long-term physical health conditions (LTPHCs) attending school can be difficult. There is a lack of evidence documenting their school attendance experiences, how schools manage absence for these children, and subsequent effects. This study utilised an existing dataset from eighty-nine 11-18-year-olds in mainstream secondary schools in the United Kingdom across 11 LTPHCs that provided first-hand accounts about the children's experiences of school. Data pre-coded "attendance" were subject to thematic analysis to explore issues emerging. Findings showed attendance patterns varied, with some CYP missing little and others significant amounts of education. Children with LTPHCs wanted to attend school and did their best to navigate education alongside health. School systems for attendance were inconsistent and adversarial. Remedial and supportive action emerged as lacking, and children felt it was their personal responsibility to make up for lost time and missed work when absent. Decisions on whether they attended school, coupled with practices promoting high attendance had detrimental consequences for CYP with LTPHCs educationally, emotionally and socially. Overall, children with LTPHCs felt punished, stigmatised, unfairly treated, unequal and excluded. Results have implications for education, health, and policy practitioners to better plan and target attention so that the LTPHC cohort are treated sensitively and equitably and afforded their entitlement to education when they cannot go to school for health reasons often outside of their control.

This study primarily aimed to develop a program that aids parents of children with Special Educational Needs (SEN), placing emphasis on the challenges encountered in communication and understanding. The Eidemiller and Justizkis's (2008) Family Relationship Analysis (FRA) served as the core method of the research. As inclusive education progresses, new challenges incessantly emerge necessitating immediate effective solutions. This research spotlights the triad of teachers, psychologists, and parents. A cornerstone of this research is the emphasis on nurturing a unique bond between school psychologists or teachers and parents. This bond should be anchored in mutual trust, motivation, and a conducive psychological environment. The overarching goal is to boost parental motivation, alleviate concerns linked to the child's condition, reinforce family relationships, and cultivate a positive enabling environment for the child. The study culminated in the rollout of a tailored program connecting parents with educational professionals. This program encompassed lectures and exercises delving into understanding challenges, coupled with innovative methods like fairy tale activities and initiatives to foster tolerance. Feedback indicated a notable positive impact on parents. The research underscores the necessity of fostering parental confidence and assuaging fears regarding their child's condition. In this context, the influence of peers and friends on the development of inclusive education should be considered in future studies.

In Ireland, hospital schools comprise a very small component of the overall primary and post-primary education system. Indeed, there are only seven hospital schools employing a total of 21 teachers nationally. Given the size and uniqueness of this education setting, opportunities for teacher continuous professional development are limited. This qualitative research study examined Irish hospital teachers' perceptions of their continuing professional development needs using a case study approach. The research captured the perspectives of 19 teachers currently teaching in seven hospital schools in Ireland. Data consisted of responses to an anonymous online questionnaire and two focus groups designed to examine and interpret the questionnaire data. Thematic analysis was conducted on all data collected. The findings revealed that Irish hospital teachers have a clear shared perception of the professional development needs both for newly hired and currently practising hospital teachers. Hospital schools are a very small, but a very important component of education in Ireland, and the professional needs identified are specific to this unique context. Teachers working in this context must be supported so that they can provide the education that the pupils, who must access this service, deserve.

More than 14 million children in the United States are identified as children with special healthcare needs (CSHCN). Rates of hospitalization for CSHCN with chronic conditions as well as re-admissions have been increasing in recent years. For hospitalized children transitioning back to their school of record, a host of issues may arise such as socioemotional concerns, peer rejection, and being behind in academics. Hospital-based school programs (HBSPs) play an important role in the transition back to a child's school of record. Utilizing a database of inpatient CSHCN at a midwestern children's hospital's HBSP, private and public-school educators associated with the previously hospitalized CSHCN were asked to complete an online survey to gather their perspectives related to the child's transition back to the school of record upon hospital discharge. Overall, educators' perspectives of the HBSP were positive while perceptions related to communication provided by the HBSP were mixed. Educators surveyed reported a lack of training related to working with CSHCN. Finally, accommodations and services offered to students upon return to school focused mostly on academic performance and attendance. Study limitations and implications for practice in schools are discussed.

Thanks to medical successes and new treatment options, children and adolescents with rare diseases can now attend school more often playing an important role in their recovery as well as improving their social inclusion. For this reason, it is important for teachers to address the issue and acquire skills in dealing with rare diseases. In this context, a multi-professional team at the Salzburg University of Teacher Education organized a blended learning seminar on the topic of rare diseases at schools. Participants were provided with videos, texts, and case studies on a learning platform, which were worked on over a period of three weeks. There were also two online lectures in which questions could be asked. In order to evaluate the tool, 21 participants took part in a quantitative longitudinal study by means of a pretest and a posttest with a four-month interval. The participants completed a questionnaire consisting of a competence screening dealing with rare diseases together with questions to measure general and teacher self-efficacy. As expected, there was a statistically significant increase in both general and teacher self-efficacy with medium effect sizes. In addition, the theoretical and practical skills for supporting affected students at school were also shown to improve in a self-assessment. In view of the positive response from participants, it is recommended to further expand this offering in order to reach a broader population of teachers. In other words, only through raising awareness and increasing the competence of professionals working in schools can an environment be created for affected children and adolescents in which their specific needs are addressed.

The quality of life for a child with a chronic illness depends on various factors, including the illness's severity, medical treatments, psychosocial and educational support, resource availability, and community involvement. These biopsychosocial factors become significant when the child receives care at home. This article presents and evaluates a highly personalized support project offered to 40 Sicilian families, consisting of educational, social, and psychological services delivered at the families homes and in their communities. Guided by the Psychosocial Assessment Tool (PAT) and the Functional Psychology framework, the project employed a family-focused approach to healthcare and was based on a continuous dialogue between all stakeholders. The project was evaluated through a qualitative interview with eight families in the Palermo area, which was analyzed using consensual qualitative research. Results revealed families' appreciation of the project and the importance of a professional who listened to their needs, provided a connection with the medical team, and tailored activities inside and outside the home. The ability of professionals to listen and adapt activities to different contexts and needs was crucial for the project's success. We conclude that creating tailored family-level interventions with an educator acting as a liaison with the medical team is a widely acceptable strategy that should be further developed and investigated.