Win-win study strengthens prevention in outpatient pediatrics
Project launch in the innovation fund
The "Sei dabei!" study funded by the Innovation Committee of the Federal Joint Committee was launched in November 2025. The project is being implemented as part of the Innovation Fund and pursues a central goal: to raise awareness among families at an early stage about the healthy use of screen media and to strengthen paediatric and adolescent medical practices in their preventive advice in the long term.
Strong consortium from science and healthcare
The consortium is led by Dr. Silke Schwarz and Prof. David Martin from the Gerhard Kienle Chair at Witten/Herdecke University. The study consortium also includes BVKJ-Service GmbH, the BKK Landesverband Bayern and the Institute for Community Medicine at Greifswald University Hospital.
The project thus combines scientific expertise, proximity to care and health economic competence.
Nationwide integration of 1,153 practices
Since December 2025, pediatric practices across Germany have been involved in the study via the PraxisApp and the "STARKE KIDS by BKK" selective contract. A total of 1,153 practices were randomly assigned to an intervention or control group.
Doctors in the intervention group were motivated by a video clip to take part in a CME-certified online training course and implement the intervention in a structured manner.
Aim: Early prevention and strengthening parenting skills
The study focuses on the question of how parents can be supported in managing their pre-school children's screen time in a healthy way. The aim is to identify early, unregulated media use, provide guidance in line with current guidelines and highlight alternatives that are suitable for everyday use.
Specifically, as part of the U7a screening for three-year-old children, a signal sticker is stuck into the yellow screening booklet. This takes up three central recommendations of the AWMF guideline "Prevention of dysregulated screen media use in childhood and adolescence": a maximum of 30 minutes of screen time per day, regular screen-free days and no unsupervised screen use. The sticker serves as a visible reinforcement of the medical consultation and supports parents in everyday life.
Intensive media coaching for increased needs
In addition, parents of children with conspicuous screen time - determined via a pre-interventional survey - receive structured intensive media coaching in the practice.
The practices in the control group provide the usual standard care. The result is a practical study design that reflects the reality of outpatient care and at the same time provides new preventive impetus.
Accompanying evaluation and surveys
The parent survey is currently being launched via the PraxisApp - in both the intervention and control groups. Among other things, the children's screen time, family activities and exercise opportunities ("walkability"), the child's level of development and the parents' internet usage are being surveyed.
Further surveys are conducted three, six and nine months after the U7a and again before the U8 examination. In addition to the effect evaluation, "Sei dabei!" also includes a mixed-methods process evaluation and a health economic analysis based on routine data from children insured by BKK. In this way, effectiveness, feasibility and cost-effectiveness are examined in equal measure.
Further information and contact
Detailed information on the study can be found at
http://www.bildschirmfrei-sei-dabei.de
If you have any questions, please contact the project management:
Dr. med. Silke Schwarz and Prof. Dr. med. David Martin
E-mail: silke.schwarz@uni-wh.de
"Screen-free - be there!" combines scientific evidence with everyday prevention - and thus creates real added value for families, medical practices and the healthcare system.