The PRETEND Program: Evaluating the Feasibility of a Remote Parent-Training Intervention for Children With Prader-Willi Syndrome.

Zyga et al. (2018) tested a six-week telehealth program called PRETEND. It teaches parents of preschoolers with Prader-Willi syndrome how to use play-based behavior skills at home.

All sessions happened on Zoom. No family drove to a clinic. The team asked moms and dads if the format felt doable and helpful.

Parents gave the program top marks: 5.64 out of 6 for acceptability and 4.75 out of 5 for satisfaction. They liked the short weekly video calls and clear handouts.

The study shows remote training is practical for a rare genetic disorder where families often live far from specialists.

Llanes et al. (2020) ran a near-copy study with toddlers who have autism. Both used six live Zoom sessions and saw happy parents. The pattern tells us the six-week live-coach model works across diagnoses.

Gauert et al. (2022) went further. They used telehealth to teach parents discrete-trial training and proved parents hit high fidelity. Their stricter design extends Olena’s feasibility claim by showing parents can master technique, not just like the course.

Turgeon et al. (2021) looked like a contradiction at first. Their fully self-guided web course for autism parents had big dropout and side effects. The key difference is guidance: Olena kept live coaches on Zoom, while Stéphanie used no live support. The clash warns us that dropping the human coach may sink parent engagement.

If you serve rural families or any rare diagnosis, you can copy PRETEND tomorrow. Schedule six one-hour Zoom lessons, email short handouts, and end with a parent satisfaction survey. Keep a live coach in every session to hold attention and answer questions in real time. This low-cost setup erases mileage limits and still earns high parent buy-in.