| Summary: | <p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Exhaustion and fatigue are commonly experienced by parents during the post-partum period, and can have implications for daily functioning, mental health and parenting practices. There is a need for the development of effective interventions to assist parents with the management of fatigue. This paper outlines the procedure for a randomised controlled study which aims to test the efficacy of <it>Wide Awake Parenting</it>, a program for the management of fatigue in the postnatal period.</p> <p>Methods/design</p> <p>Parents with an infant less than 6 months of age, and from seven Local Government Areas in Melbourne, Australia were invited to participate in this study. Parents were randomised to receive the <it>Wide Awake Parenting</it> program (intervention groups) or usual care (control group) offered by health services. The <it>Wide Awake Parenting</it> program provides parents with psycho-education and information about fatigue, and strategies to reduce its effects either via a self-directed method, or professionally led with a home visit and telephone support. Baseline data will be collected prior to randomisation, and further data will be collected at 2- and 6-weeks post intervention.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>To our knowledge this is the first randomised controlled trial of a program which compares the efficacy of a self-management approach and health professional assistance for the management of fatigue in the early post-partum period. If effective, it could offer an important, universal public health management approach to this common health concern.</p> <p>Trial registration number</p> <p>Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, ACTRN12611000133932.</p>
|
|---|