Final Seminar in Finland

Preparing a child for examinations – new innovative methods to support professionals and families

The final seminar about preparing children for hospitalization with new innovative methods was held at Turku University Hospital in Johan Haartman Hall on 6^th of May 2025. It was possible to participate in the event on site or remotely via Teams. The participants came from different parts of Finland from different organizations, the hospital world and higher education institutions.

At the beginning of the seminar, the guidance methods and digital aids currently in use for preparing a child for examinations or procedures were discussed, and especially what is used daily at the Lighthouse Hospital Children’s Hospital to prepare and support children. Mirka Toivonen and Tiina Pelander presented the background of the Mobile Hospital project and how the application ended up with the content that is now in the application.

Master’s student Lotta Salo presented the results of her thesis, in which she studied children’s experiences of the Mobile Hospital application and its usability. The study was carried out at the Lighthouse Hospital in the paediatric surgical ward. The children were satisfied with the use of the application. You can read more about this in Talk magazine on page 8 (in Finnish)
https://issuu.com/turunamk/docs/talk_magazine_2025_hyv_el_m_

The seminar also presented the application and its different treatment paths. The application can be used by the children themselves, together with their parents and/or by staff to prepare the child and family for the procedure and/or examination. The application also contains information for parents on how to prepare children of different ages for hospitalisation and how to support them in different situations. You can get acquainted with the application from the address below. Application: https://www.turkugamelab.fi/mobilehospital/

Information about the application and its usability will be collected in late spring from nurses, parents and children. The results of these will be available during the summer and early autumn.

Programme Manual Online

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