Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Functional seizures have profound effects on adolescents and their families. These adolescents report negative experiences with healthcare and school-based providers that are likely exacerbated by racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities. Research with this population has been conducted mainly in clinic settings. This study aimed to (1) Determine if a racially/ethnically and socioeconomically diverse group of adolescents with functional seizures can be recruited via a community-based online incentivized survey, (2) Describe adolescents' mental health care utilization and parents' perceptions of encountering disparities in the adolescents' healthcare, (3) Describe adolescents' school-based outcomes, and (4) Describe adolescents' and their parents' perspectives on school-based care. METHODS: A cross-sectional community-based online incentivized survey with adolescents with functional seizures and their parents. RESULTS: A racially/ethnically and socioeconomically diverse sample of 22 adolescents with functional seizures and their parents completed the survey, although recruitment was challenged by a high rate of fraudulent and careless responders. Most adolescent responders were chronically absent from school, and most were receiving mental health treatment. Half of the parents reported health disparities due to race/ethnicity, cost, or both. Parents and adolescents provided valuable insights regarding their perspectives on school-based care for adolescents with functional seizures. CONCLUSION: School nurses and other healthcare providers should develop strategies to address chronic absenteeism due to functional seizures, assess health disparities experienced by adolescents and their families, combat lack of understanding of functional seizures, and provide informed and compassionate care for this population. Survey researchers should develop a systematic plan using multiple strategies to combat fraudulent responses in survey research.