Objective:

To explore parents’ experiences of children’s urine collection for gluten immunogenic peptide (GIP) testing, including barriers, emotional responses and views on possible home-based point-of-care testing.

Approach:

• Design: Single-centre qualitative study using semi-structured group interviews conducted by secure video conference over six months.
• Participants: Ten parents whose children had previously participated in research involving GIP urine testing were recruited purposively; the children themselves were not interviewed.
• Analysis: Thematic analysis was used to identify recurrent themes concerning sampling barriers, emotional reactions and interest in potential future GIP point-of-care testing.

Key Findings:

• Four principal themes were identified: practical and emotional obstacles to urine collection; effects of the clinical environment on children; parental enthusiasm for home-based PoCT; and suggested improvements to interactions with clinical settings.
• Secondary themes included confusion about sampling instructions, embarrassment and environmental stress.
• Parents expressed interest in periodic GIP PoCT, particularly during dietary training or after suspected gluten exposure.

Interpretation:

The authors report that parents viewed GIP PoCT as a potentially valuable adjunct to childhood coeliac disease management when paired with education and supportive care.

Limitations:

• The study was conducted at a single centre and included 10 parents whose children had previously participated in GIP research.
• Children’s perspectives were not directly collected.

Conclusion:

The authors call for future work on child-friendly test design, user-centred educational materials and research that includes children’s direct perspectives.