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Parents' perspectives, information needs and healthcare preferences when consulting for their children with
Pierre-Philippe Piché-Renaud1, Louis-Philippe Thibault1, Sandrine Essouri1
1Department of Paediatrics, CHU Sainte-Justine, University of Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada.
Insights
Parents of infants hospitalized with bronchiolitis need more than just educational tools; they require significant emotional support and reassurance from healthcare teams to manage anxiety related to their child's health.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Infant Health
- Respiratory Illnesses
Background:
- Bronchiolitis is a primary cause of infant hospitalization.
- Parental experiences and information needs during infant bronchiolitis are under-described.
- Understanding parental perspectives is crucial for improving care.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore parents' lived experiences with infant bronchiolitis.
- To identify parents' preferred methods for receiving health information.
- To assess parental needs for support and reassurance.
Main Methods:
- Qualitative study utilizing semi-structured interviews.
- Conducted with 15 parents of 13 infants diagnosed with bronchiolitis.
- Interviews transcribed verbatim until thematic saturation.
Main Results:
- Parental anxiety stemmed from worry about their child's health and limited knowledge of bronchiolitis.
- Parents found educational resources informative but insufficient.
- A strong need for emotional support and reassurance from healthcare teams was consistently expressed.
Conclusions:
- Parental knowledge regarding bronchiolitis is often low, despite its prevalence.
- Standardized educational tools, while helpful, do not fully address parental needs.
- Integrating emotional support and reassurance into care is essential for families experiencing infant bronchiolitis.
Aim:
Bronchiolitis is the leading cause of hospitalisation in infants, but parental experiences have not been well described. This study explored parents' experiences and asked them how they wanted to receive information.
Methods:
A qualitative study was conducted in a tertiary paediatric hospital in Québec, Canada. It consisted of semi-structured interviews with 15 parents of 13 children with bronchiolitis. The interview guide was constructed by a multidisciplinary team that included a parent. The interviews, which were transcribed verbatim, were conducted until no new themes emerged.
Results:
We interviewed eight mothers, three fathers and two couples for 22-70 minutes: six were carried out in person during the bronchiolitis episode, and seven were phone interviews after a median interval time of 107 days. Parents were very worried about their child's health and their lack of knowledge about bronchiolitis contributed to their anxiety. They found education resources informative, but expressed a strong need for support and reassurance from healthcare teams. The two groups provided similar feedback, regardless of when they were interviewed or whether their child was admitted.
Conclusion:
Although bronchiolitis is common in infancy, parental knowledge was low. Standardised educational tools were useful, but insufficient to meet all their needs.
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