Exploring communication between parents and clinical teams following children's heart surgery: a survey in the UK
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Christina Pagel1,2, Catherine Bull2, Martin Utley1
1Clinical Operational Research Unit, University College London, London, UK.
Insights
Consistent communication is vital for families of children undergoing heart surgery. This is especially important when complications arise or hospital stays are prolonged, impacting parental involvement and understanding.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Surgery
- Healthcare Communication
- Patient-Centered Care
Background:
- Effective communication between clinicians and families is crucial for pediatric surgical care.
- Understanding parental experiences can identify areas for improvement in healthcare delivery.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore clinician-family communication during pediatric heart surgery.
- To identify factors influencing communication quality and parental satisfaction.
Main Methods:
- Descriptive study involving a questionnaire for parents of children undergoing heart surgery.
- Data collected from 385 parents across four UK specialist hospitals between October 2015 and December 2017.
- Responses analyzed and disaggregated by patient characteristics like complications and length of stay.
Main Results:
- 81% of parents reported staff introductions, but only 59% felt definitely involved in decision-making.
- Two-thirds experienced inconsistent information, leading to confusion.
- Parents of children with complications or longer stays reported poorer communication and involvement.
Conclusions:
- Consistent communication is essential for families of children undergoing heart surgery.
- Addressing communication gaps is critical, particularly for vulnerable patient groups.
- Improving communication can enhance parental involvement and understanding during complex surgical journeys.
Objective:
To explore communication between clinicians and families of children undergoing heart surgery.
Design:
This study was part of a larger study to select, define and measure the incidence of postoperative complications in children undergoing heart surgery. Parents of children recruited to a substudy between October 2015 and December 2017 were asked to complete a questionnaire about communication during their child's inpatient stay. We explored all responses and then disaggregated by the following patient characteristics: presence of a complication, length of stay, hospital site, ethnicity and child's age. This was a descriptive study only.
Setting:
Four UK specialist hospitals.
Results:
We recruited 585 children to the substudy with 385 responses (response rate 66%).81% of parents reported that new members of staff always introduced themselves (18% sometimes, 1% no). Almost all parents said they were encouraged to be involved in decision-making, but often only to some extent (59% 'yes, definitely'; 37% 'to some extent'). Almost two-thirds of parents said they were told different things by different people which left them feeling confused (10% 'a lot'; 53% 'sometimes'). Two-thirds (66%) reported that staff were definitely aware of their child's medical history (31% 'to some extent'). 90% said the operation was definitely explained to them (9% 'to some extent') and 79% that they were definitely told what to do if they were worried after discharge (17% 'to some extent').Parents of children with a complication tended to give less positive responses for involvement in decision-making, consistent communication and staff awareness of their child's medical history. Parents whose children had longer stays in hospital tended to report lower levels of consistent communication and involvement in decision-making.
Conclusions:
Our results emphasise the need for consistent communication with families, particularly where complications arise or for children who have longer stays in the hospital.