Psychometric Validation of the Flemish Version of the Transition Readiness Assessment Questionnaire (TRAQ 6.0) in Young People With Chronic Conditions

Healthcare transition, which involves preparing children and adolescents for the shift from pediatric to adult healthcare, received increased attention in recent years. Evidence and consensus suggest that effective healthcare transition has long-term benefits for patients, including better adherence to treatment, improved follow-up, and reduced morbidity. The American Academy of Pediatrics published guidelines in 2018 to facilitate good transitions, and similar guidelines were issued by NICE in 2016. Various psychosocial questionnaires are available to assess the self-management skills of adolescents and young adults during this transition (i.e., transition readiness). The most well-known and widely used questionnaire is the Transition Readiness Assessment Questionnaire (TRAQ). Despite its widespread use and validation in other languages, there is currently no validated Flemish version. This observational study aims to validate the Dutch version of the TRAQ for psychometric reliability. The study will conduct a psychometric validation of the Flemish TRAQ 6.0 following the ISPOR guidelines. The validation process will include: Preparation and forward-backward translation; Harmonization between different language versions; and administering the final questionnaire to a larger sample to assess validity and reliability. Demographic data (age, sex, ethnicity/nationality, and parental education level) and medical information (type of chronic condition, age of diagnosis, timing of transfer to adult care (if known), and unaccompanied hospital visits) will be collected. The calculated sample size is 90 participants, with a significance level of 0.05, a power of 0.80, and an estimated effect size of 0.6. Considering a 40% risk of non-response, the final sample size will be at least 150 participants. Eligible participants are adolescents and young adults aged 16 to 25 years, diagnosed with at least one chronic condition, receiving medical follow-ups in secondary or tertiary care hospitals, and able to read and speak Flemish Dutch.

Inclusion Criteria: * aged 16 to 25 years old, diagnosed with at least one chronic condition, attended at least one pediatric outpatient visit in a secondary or tertiary care hospital within the past 12 months prior to inclusion, and are able to read and speak Flemish Dutch Exclusion Criteria: * neurodevelopmental, cognitive or serious mental health issues will be excluded