Related Experiment Videos
Hospitalization due to bronchiolitis: factors influencing parents' experience
Manuel Montilla-Pérez1, Miguel Ángel Zafra Anta1, Domingo Palacios-Ceña2
1Hospital Universitario de Fuenlabrada, Fuenlabrada, Madrid, España.
Insights
Parents of children hospitalized with bronchiolitis experienced uncertainty with monitoring devices and a strong need for information. They perceived their child's fragility and reorganized family life to ensure constant presence during hospitalization.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Nursing
- Qualitative Research
Background:
- Bronchiolitis is a common respiratory infection in infants and young children.
- Hospitalization for bronchiolitis can be a stressful experience for parents.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the lived experiences of parents whose children were hospitalized due to bronchiolitis.
- To explore parental perceptions of monitoring, information needs, child fragility, coping mechanisms, and family reorganization.
Main Methods:
- Phenomenological qualitative study utilizing thematic analysis.
- Purposeful sampling of 10 parents with children hospitalized for bronchiolitis.
- Data collected through focus groups and researchers' field notes.
Main Results:
- Parents experienced dependence and uncertainty with monitoring devices, driving a need for information.
- Perception of child fragility was based on appearance and physical condition.
- Parents developed coping strategies including information seeking and professional engagement.
- Family environments were reorganized to facilitate constant parental presence.
Conclusions:
- Findings can inform healthcare professionals on managing parental information needs.
- Empowering parents through effective communication is crucial during pediatric hospitalization.
- Understanding parental experiences can improve care for children with bronchiolitis.
Aim:
To describe the experience of the parents of children hospitalized due to bronchiolitis.
Method:
Phenomenological qualitative study. Purposeful sampling was undertaken of parents with children diagnosed with bronchiolitis, from December 7, 2015 to January 8, 2016, and admitted to the paediatric department of a public hospital of the Madrid Health Service. Data collection strategies included focus groups and researchers' field notes. Afterwards, the data were analyzed using thematic analysis. We included 10 parents, aged between 30 and 39 years. Five themes were explored: perception of monitoring, need to know, perception of child fragility, coping strategies, and reorganization of the family environment.
Results:
Oxygen saturation monitoring through devices produced dependence and uncertainty in the parents. In addition, there was a need to know and understand the technical language, which encouraged searching for information on the Internet. The parents perceived the fragility of the hospitalized child through their appearance and physical state. In addition, they developed different coping strategies to seek and confirm information, to approach professionals and be present with their children. Finally, the family was reorganised to maintain the constant presence of the parents during hospitalization.
Conclusions:
The results obtained can help paediatric professionals manage the information given to parents and thus empower them.