Table 4 Acceptability themes and quotes from parent interviews

Welcome telephone call

They seemed to be able to answer any questions about, I was concerned about the frequency of what I would have to do as a parent, so how much involvement there was initially and she was quite good at answering all my questions (Interview 18, IMD decile 8, child age 3 years 6 months)

For me personally, the fact that I’d read everything and understood it, and not needed to contact… I felt that she could have done without it.

Interview 8, IMD decile 8, child age 3 years 4 months

Daily symptom record

Having been through a cycle [of data collection for one illness episode] it was clear that it did not really impact in our lives in any kind of negative way so there was no reason to pull out.

Interview 25, IMD decile 8, child age 1 year 7 months

It was fairly straightforward and I think because I knew what I was doing, especially after the first day of filling in the questionnaire you kind of remember maybe a bit more clearly in relation to what the list of symptoms were kind of ‘yes, he’s got that today, he did not have that yesterday, I must remember to put that down’…

Interview 25, IMD decile 8, child age 1 year 7 months

Study communication

I have initiated contact to say they are symptomatic because, to my mind, my slight issue about the study is this whole issue about the weekly contact, and you can literally have missed an entire illness episode.

Interview 22, IMD decile 8, child age 4 years 2 months

The emails tend to come through on an evening, as well, which is brilliant, because in the evening is generally when I have got the time to be dealing with it.

Interview 3, IMD decile 1, Child age 8 years 6 months

Research nurse visit and swab taking

It [swab instructions] was just a lot of stages to it. Especially while you have got a toddler there waiting to have something put up their nose or something and you are like, ‘Hang on a minute. I have just got to read the instructions.’

Interview 15, IMD decile 4, child age 3 years 0 months

There was that level of slight anxiety of what do I have to do and am I getting this right and going back to the instructions.

Interview 7, IMD decile 10, child age 9 years 10 months

Child response

I mean from what I was seeing she was feeling a little bit important, you know it’s something special a bit, she does not normally do it so it’s actually very nice and we are saying its helping research and she feels special about you know.

Interview 13, IMD decile 6, child age 10 years 9 months

When we took her for the sample from the nose or the saliva, yeah she was just crying.

Interview 21, IMD decile 8, child age 1 year 3 months