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Aboriginal perspectives on recognising clinical deterioration in their child and communicating concerns to clinicians
Fenella J Gill1, Alannah L Cooper2, Pamela Laird3
1Nursing Research, Perth Children's Hospital, 15 Hospital Avenue, Nedlands 6009, WA, Australia; School of Nursing, Curtin University, Perth 6102, WA, Australia; Curtin enAble Institute, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Perth, WA, Australia.
Insights
Family involvement in recognising clinical deterioration in Aboriginal children is crucial. Culturally relevant posters can improve communication and support early alarm raising in hospitals.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric healthcare
- Indigenous health research
- Clinical communication
Background:
- Escalation of care processes for hospitalized children increasingly involve family members for early recognition of clinical deterioration.
- Limited understanding exists regarding Australian Aboriginal families' perspectives on recognizing and reporting their child's deterioration.
- Current escalation of care systems may not adequately address the needs of Aboriginal families.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore Aboriginal families' involvement in recognizing clinical deterioration in hospitalized children.
- To assess the effectiveness of a poster designed to enhance family involvement in escalation of care.
Main Methods:
- A qualitative pragmatist approach was employed.
- Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five mothers and two grandmothers of Aboriginal children.
- Thematic analysis was used to analyze interview data.
Main Results:
- Families identified the importance of knowing when to worry and communicating concerns, highlighting a need for increased knowledge on recognizing clinical deterioration.
- Communication barriers between families and clinicians were identified as a significant issue.
- Posters were perceived as effective for visual communication, with effectiveness linked to linguistic clarity, visual appeal, and culturally relevant content.
Conclusions:
- Enhanced communication strategies are necessary to support effective clinician-family partnerships for Aboriginal children in hospital.
- Culturally appropriate visual aids, such as posters with simplified language and cultural connections, can improve family involvement in recognizing and escalating clinical deterioration.
- Health professionals and service managers should consider these insights to improve care for Aboriginal children and their families.
Aims And Objectives:
To explore the perspectives of family members of Aboriginal children about a) their involvement in recognising clinical deterioration in a hospital setting and b) the effectiveness of a poster designed to promote family involvement.
Background:
To assist in the early recognition and response to clinical deterioration for hospitalised children, many escalation of care processes now include family involvement. Little is currently known about the perspectives of Australian Aboriginal families in recognising deterioration in their child and raising the alarm, or if current escalation of care systems meet the needs of Aboriginal families.
Design:
Qualitative pragmatist approach using semi-structured interviews.
Methods:
Seven interviews were conducted with five mothers and two grandmothers of Aboriginal children who were inpatients at a children's hospital. Thematic analysis was undertaken.
Findings:
Two themes were identified: Theme one was: Family role in recognising and responding to clinical deterioration, with two subthemes of knowing when to worry and communicating concerns. Participants reported that some families needed more knowledge to recognise clinical deterioration. Communication barriers between families and clinicians were identified. Theme two was: Effective visual communication with three subthemes of linguistic clarity, visual appeal and content.
Conclusions:
Additional strategies are needed to promote effective communication between clinicians and families of Aboriginal children in hospital. Posters were considered effective, particularly if including a cultural connection, images and simplified language.
Practice Implications:
These insights provide important information for health professionals and health service managers to be aware that additional communication strategies are required to support Aboriginal family involvement in recognising clinical deterioration and escalation of care.
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