GROW | Child and Adolescent Health and Digital Innovation
GROW advances child and adolescent health and wellbeing through multidisciplinary research conducted with children and young people as co-researchers. The group focuses on health promotion, health literacy, healthy lifestyles, risk behaviour prevention, and the wellbeing of children and adolescents, including those living with chronic conditions. A defining feature of GROW is its co-research approach: children, adolescents, families, and other stakeholders actively participate in shaping, developing, and evaluating all research activities and interventions. GROW co-creates and evaluates digital innovations, including mobile applications, gamification, serious games, and digital care pathways, to support health, wellbeing, and positive behaviour change. Through participatory research, experimental and longitudinal studies, GROW generates evidence-based solutions for healthcare and educational settings while advancing understanding of how digital technologies can promote healthy choices and wellbeing.
Projects
Dreamcatcher
Dreamcatcher project
During the Dreamcatcher project, a health game intervention aims to educate preschool-aged children (4-6y) to be prepared for anesthesia and to reduce their anxiety. Project is carried out together with the University of Iceland and studies are conducted in Finland and in Iceland.
Read more:
Ingadóttir B, Laitonen E, Stefánsdóttir A, Sigurdardottir AO, Brynjólfsdóttir B, Parisod H, Nyman J, Gunnarsdottir K, Jonsdottir K, Salanterä S, Pakarinen A. Developing a health game to prepare preschool children for anesthesia: A formative research using child-centered approach. JMIR Serious Games, 20;10(1):e31471.
Contact information:
PI (University of Iceland): Brynja Ingadóttir, PhD, RN, CNS (Landspitali University Hospital), Associate Professor (University of Iceland), brynjain@hi.is
PI (University of Turku): Anni Pakarinen, PhD, MHSc, RN, anni.pakarinen@utu.fi
PhD researcher: Elina Laitonen, MHSc, RN, elina.r.salmi@utu.fi
HEAL
HEAL project
Health Equity for children and AdoLescents – Empowering Healthy Lifestyles with Smart Technologies
The HEAL Project is an international collaboration of Higher Education Institutions and SMEs led by the University of Turku in partnership with Univeristy of Jyväskylä, Uppsala University and the University of Lleida. HEAL project aims to develop and pilot test an innovative HEAL intervention for children and adolescents (10-13-year-old) including cutting-edge tools and technologies to foster their health literacy and empower them to adopt healthy lifestyles, and to ultimately promote their physical (physical activity, nutrition, sleep) and psychosocial health.
Read more:
Kubota K, Auxier J, Aslan F, Joronen K, Pakarinen A. 2024. Gamified Interventions for Promoting the Psychosocial Well-being of School-aged Children: A Scoping Review. Games for Health Journal, 13(4), pp. 234–244
Contact information:
PI Anni Pakarinen, PhD, MHSc, RN, anni.pakarinen@utu.fi
Funders:
The Finnish Nursing Education Foundation Turku University Foundation
Finland-China Food Health (FCFH) network, University of Turku
Turku University Hospital Foundation
The TechCampus Turku
Leukie: A Brave Adventure
Children with leukaemia face challenges in dietary management, including insufficient knowledge about dietary management, passive acceptance of dietary restrictions, lack of participation behaviour, and poor experience in dietary management. Leukie project aims to design and develop a serious game for dietary management based on the Fogg Behavior Model, targeting children with leukaemia to optimize their dietary management experience and promote healthy dietary behaviours.
Contact information:
Xiaolan Dong, Doctoral researcher, xiadon@utu.fi
NO! To smoking & FUME
NO! To smoking & FUME
The aim of the project is to increase understanding on health literacy, and tobacco-preventive health education needs and expectations from adolescents’ perspective. Further, the aim is to develop a digital health game that supports health literacy and a tobacco free lifestyle in 10 to 13-year-old early adolescents.
More information:
http://fume.utu.fi/
Fume on mukana Terveyskylä.fi:n Nuortentalon sovellusten joukossa!
Contact information:
PI Heidi Parisod, PhD, MHSc, PHN/RN, hemapar@utu.fi
Researcher Johanna Nyman, RN, MHsC, PhD
Principal investigator
Research team
PhD researchers
Kaile Kubota, MHSc, Doctoral researcher. Researcher in HEAL project.
Elina Laitonen, RN, MHSc, Doctoral researcher. Researcher in Dreamcatcher project.
Glenda Dangis, RN, MHSc, Doctoral researcher. Researcher in CANDY project.
Annika Nordberg, PHN, MHSc, Doctoral researcher. Researcher in HEAL project.
Sónia Borges Rodrigues, MNSc, Doctoral researcher (Nursing School of Lisbon). Researcher in No! to smoking project.
Xiaolan Dong, RN, MHS/MSN, Doctoral researcher. Researcher in Leukie project.