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Unaccompanied Hospitalized Children: An Integrative Review
Diana Lulgjuraj1, Rhonda E Maneval1
1College of Health Professions, Lienhard School of Nursing, Pace University, NY, USA.
Insights
Hospitalized children left without parents experience significant distress and potential psychological trauma. Pediatric nurses play a crucial role in mitigating these negative effects for unaccompanied children.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Nursing
- Child Psychology
- Hospital Administration
Background:
- Hospitalization is a significant stressor for children, often intensified when they are unaccompanied by parents or caregivers.
- Family-centered care, emphasizing parental presence, is a strategy to reduce hospitalization-related stress.
- Despite efforts, some children remain unaccompanied in the hospital due to various circumstances.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the phenomenon of unaccompanied hospitalized children.
- To understand the experiences and challenges faced by children hospitalized without parental accompaniment.
Main Methods:
- An integrative review of relevant literature was conducted.
- Electronic databases (CINAHL, PubMed, PsycINFO) and reference lists were searched for English, full-text articles.
- Eleven studies were included, analyzed, and synthesized, with quality assessed using appraisal checklists.
Main Results:
- Unaccompanied hospitalized children exhibit significant distress due to the stressors of hospitalization experienced alone.
- The combination of hospitalization and separation can lead to psychological trauma during and after the hospital stay.
- Pediatric nurses actively work to provide care that minimizes the adverse effects on unaccompanied children.
Conclusions:
- Unaccompanied hospitalized children constitute a vulnerable population requiring specialized attention.
- Current research inadequately addresses the full scope of the unaccompanied hospitalized child's experience.
- Pediatric nurses are well-positioned to address the physical and psychosocial needs of these children, alleviating distress and its consequences.
Problem:
A child's hospitalization is often associated with stress that is exacerbated when the child is left unaccompanied by parents/caregivers. Parental presence, as part of a family-centered approach to care, is a strategy to mitigate the stressors and negative effects of hospitalization. However, due to a variety of circumstances, some children continue to remain unaccompanied in the hospital. This integrative review explored the phenomenon of unaccompanied hospitalized children.
Eligibility Criteria:
Relevant articles available in full-text and written in English were identified through electronic searches of CINAHL, PubMed, and PsycINFO and through hand searches of reference lists.
Sample:
Eleven studies were included, analyzed, and synthesized into themes. Study quality was assessed using Bowling and Pearson's appraisal checklists.
Results:
Distress of hospitalized children is evident when children are unaccompanied in the hospital and left to experience the stressors of hospitalization alone. The compounding effects of hospitalization and separation can cause distress and psychological trauma during and after the hospitalization period. Pediatric nurses strive to provide care to unaccompanied children that lessens these negative effects.
Conclusions:
Unaccompanied hospitalized children represent a vulnerable population. While the literature provides some insight into the experiences, research does not adequately explore the unaccompanied hospitalized child's experience.
Implications:
Pediatric nurses hold a position that enable them to support the physical and psychosocial needs of unaccompanied hospitalized children. By recognizing and addressing the stressors and distress unaccompanied children experience, nurses can help alleviate the subsequent effects resulting from separation and hospitalization.
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