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Family-centered care: do we practice what we preach?
Mary F Petersen1, Jayne Cohen, Virgil Parsons
1Maternal-Child Health, Kaiser Foundation Hospital, Santa Clara, CA 95051-5386, USA. mary.petersen@kp.org
Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, and Neonatal Nursing : JOGNN
|September 7, 2004
Summary
Nurses perceive family-centered care as essential but do not consistently implement it in practice. Experience level and work setting, such as the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), impact these perceptions and practices.
Area of Science:
- Nursing
- Pediatric Care
- Family-Centered Care
Background:
- Family-centered care is a vital approach in pediatric and neonatal settings.
- Understanding nurses' perceptions and practices is crucial for improving care quality.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine nurses' perceptions and practices of family-centered care elements.
- To explore how experience and work setting influence these factors.
Main Methods:
- Descriptive study design.
- Survey administered to 62 nurses in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), pediatrics, and pediatric intensive care unit (PICU).
- Utilized the Family-Centered Care Questionnaire to assess perceived necessity and current practice.
Main Results:
- Nurses rated the necessity of family-centered care elements significantly higher than their current practice (p = .000).
- Nurses with 10 years or less experience scored higher on both necessity and current practice scales compared to those with more experience.
- Nurses in the NICU reported lower perceptions of the necessity of family-centered care compared to those in pediatrics/PICU.
Conclusions:
- Nurses recognize the importance of family-centered care but face challenges in consistent application.
- Years of nursing experience and the specific clinical setting (NICU vs. pediatrics/PICU) significantly affect nurses' views and implementation of family-centered care.