Objectives Transition from paediatric to adult care is a critical period for patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). This study aimed to assess perceptions of healthcare transition quality among adolescents and their parents. Methods In this retrospective, cross-sectional service evaluation at a paediatric tertiary IBD centre, patients aged 14–18 years with IBD who had not yet transferred to adult services and their parents or carers were invited to complete the Mind the Gap questionnaire. This tool measures discrepancies between expectations of ‘best care’ and perceptions of ‘current care’ across three domains: management of the environment, provider characteristics and process of care. Gap scores range from −7 (most satisfied) to 7 (least satisfied). Descriptive statistics, Cronbach’s alpha, Friedman tests and Mann-Whitney U tests were applied. Results 25 adolescents (71.4%) and 35 parents (100%) completed the survey. Adolescents reported moderate overall satisfaction, with no significant differences between domains. Parents demonstrated more nuanced perceptions, highlighting the environment as the area of greatest dissatisfaction (mean 1.16) and provider characteristics as the most satisfactory (mean 0.41) (p=0.004). No significant differences were observed between overall adolescent and parent gap scores. Total scale reliability was high (adolescents α=0.883; parents α=0.922). Conclusions This study represents the first application of the Mind the Gap questionnaire in adolescents with IBD preparing for transition. While adolescents reported moderate satisfaction, parents identified environmental factors as key areas for improvement. These findings highlight the need for targeted interventions to optimise transitional care and support adolescents’ readiness for adult services.
Dipasquale et al. (Thu,) studied this question.