Family Health Conversations at a Pediatric Oncology Center - A Way for Families to Rebalance the Situation

The study aimed to describe and understand adult family members' experiences of participating in a Family Health Conversation (FamHC) when a child is diagnosed with cancer.

Twelve individual interviews were performed with adult family members who had participated in a FamHC. During the interviews each interviewee was a spokesman for his or her respective family. Thereby the family was included as a system. The interviews were analyzed using a hermeneutic approach.

The analysis resulted in four themes: "To unburden the burden," "Seeing things in a new light," "To be seen the way you are," and "Talking to someone who is both within and alongside." Finally an overarching theme evolved, "To rebalance the situation" revealing the meaning of taking part in the FamHC.

All participants considered the FamHC to be valuable. It was surprising that such a relatively small investment of two family conversations and a closing letter could have such significance for the families in their difficult situation.

With training, clinical nurses can use a well-established structured interview process such as the Family Health Conversation to help family members to gain insight into each other's experiences, which increase their ability to cope and regain control.