Self-care operations and nursing interventions for children with cancer and their parents

As individuals assume more responsibility for their healthcare, nurses need to explore methods to support families' self-care practices. The purpose of this qualitative study was to: (a) determine what self-care and dependent-care operations children and parents perform to address self-care requisites, and (b) explore nursing interventions to promote operations. Orem's theory of self-care, theory of self-care deficit, and theory of nursing system were employed. Twenty-seven participants were interviewed about their cancer experiences. Results were that children and parents performed estimative, transitional, and productive operations to meet self-care requisites. Various nursing interventions that promoted these operations were identified. Recommendations were made for further interventions to support families.