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Staff's Experiences of Preparing and Caring for Children With Cancer and Their Families During the Child's
Charlotte Ångström-Brännström1, Viveca Lindh, Tufve Nyholm
1Author Affiliations: Departments of Nursing (Drs Ångström-Brännström and V. Lindh) and Radiation Sciences (Drs Nyholm and J. Lindh), Umeå University; and Department of Women's and Children's Health, Uppsala University (Dr Engvall), Sweden.
Insights
Staff experiences in preparing children with cancer for radiotherapy (RT) are crucial. Findings highlight the need for tailored interventions and continuous staff training to improve pediatric cancer care during RT.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Oncology
- Radiation Oncology
- Healthcare Staff Experience
Background:
- Radiotherapy (RT) is a common treatment for approximately one-third of children diagnosed with cancer.
- Limited research exists on healthcare staff's experiences preparing and supporting children with cancer and their families during RT.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe staff experiences in preparing and caring for pediatric cancer patients and their families during radiotherapy treatment.
Main Methods:
- Qualitative study employing semistructured interviews with staff at three Swedish RT centers.
- Inductive qualitative content analysis was used to analyze interview data.
Main Results:
- Staff experiences encompassed emotions, care for child and family, pre/during/post-RT commitments, organizational factors, and intervention feedback.
- A preparatory intervention aided staff, but requires child-specific tailoring.
- Providing care during RT was challenging, emphasizing the need for optimal support for each child and family.
Conclusions:
- Interdisciplinary teamwork and organizational support are vital for effective preparation and distraction during pediatric RT.
- Continuous professional development is essential for all staff involved in pediatric cancer care to ensure high-quality preparation and distraction.
- Tailoring interventions and fostering teamwork are key to improving the RT experience for children with cancer and their families.
Background:
Approximately one-third of children diagnosed with cancer are treated with radiotherapy (RT). Staff experiences of preparing and distracting the children and their families during a child's RT are sparsely described.
Objective:
The aim of this study was to describe staff experiences of preparing and caring for children with cancer and their families during the child's RT.
Intervention/Methods:
Semistructured interviews with staff were performed at 3 Swedish RT centers. The interviews were analyzed using inductive qualitative content analysis.
Results:
The analysis revealed 5 categories summarizing the staff members' experiences. These include the following: experiences of various emotions; care for the child and the child's family; commitments before, during, and after RT; organizational issues; and experiences of the intervention and suggestions for improvement.
Conclusions:
The preparatory intervention facilitated the ability of staff members to conduct their work, although the intervention should be specifically tailored to each child. Meeting children and their families and providing care to both during RT were challenging. The staff strived to provide optimal care for each child and family. Interdisciplinary teamwork and organizational acceptance for the importance of preparation and distraction were essential.
Implications For Practice:
A future challenge will be to provide opportunities for all staff involved in the treatment of children with cancer to develop their skills continuously in order to provide high-quality preparation and distraction to all children undergoing RT, regardless of the geographical location of the RT center.