Dear parents/carers,

My name is Ibtisam, I am a medical student at the University of Leicester doing an iMSc project on congenital heart diseases in children under the supervision of University Lecturer Dr. Jayne Spiller. I chose this project for my dissertation as I was particularly moved by what I saw during my third year of medical school. I was placed at the LRI Paediatric ICU during a specialty placement in paediatric cardiology, and it was there that I developed a deeper understanding of the struggles faced by both the children and their families when dealing with a diagnosis of a congenital heart disease. I saw the immense love and care the parents gave to their children despite the stress and sleepless nights that came with each hospital admission. Although these families had gotten used to the ups and downs of their children’s conditions, their lives were undoubtedly difficult, and I could only hope that they received appropriate support once they went home.

For this reason, I was very much drawn to this Master’s project that is looking at children with congenital heart diseases and their experiences of bullying. The aim of the project is to explore children’s experiences of bullying and potential connections with friendship patterns, mental health, and strain experienced by their families. Additionally, we are also looking at these children’s sleeping habits to see what impact this may have on their lives. We hope that the research will help future medical professionals and schools in the treatment and education of children with these conditions.

The research project involves filling out a one-off questionnaire, which takes around 15 to 30 minutes to complete. The questions concern your child’s medical condition, sleep, mental health, and experiences (if any) of bullying. All the data you provide will be anonymous not linked back to you in any way. We are keen to hear from as many parents as possible, whether or not you think bullying and sleep difficulties are problems for your child.

We would like parents to participate if they have a child who is:

between the ages of 8 to 15 years old

has a congenital heart disease

is currently enrolled in a school

Taking part in this research is completely optional, but we would really appreciate it if you could take the time to look at the questionnaire!

The link and QR code to the questionnaire (with further information on the research) is here: Click here for the survey

If you do have any further questions, please feel free to contact Dr Jayne Spiller: Click here to email Dr Jayne Spiller

Many thanks for taking the time to read this!