Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 28, 2025
Treatment Model for Young Patients with Psychogenic Erectile Dysfunction and Resultant Infertility
Published on: May 30, 2025
Parental and physician disagreement on help-seeking in paediatric case scenarios
Sarah Visscher1, Karlijn van Stralen1, Jaan Toelen2,3,4
1Department of Pediatrics, Spaarne Gasthuis, Haarlem and Hoofddorp, The Netherlands.
Insights
Parents often seek medical help for mild childhood illnesses but miss serious red flags in urgent cases. Mutual education is needed to bridge the perception gap between parents and physicians regarding child health severity.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Health Services Research
- Parental Behavior
Background:
- Parental decisions on seeking medical care for sick children are crucial.
- Discrepancies often exist between parental and physician assessments of illness severity.
- Understanding parental help-seeking triggers is essential for effective healthcare delivery.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the triggers for parental help-seeking behavior in pediatric illness.
- To compare parental and physician perspectives on the urgency of various childhood symptoms.
- To identify factors influencing parental decisions to contact healthcare professionals.
Main Methods:
- A survey study involving 200 parents and 54 physicians.
- Presentation of four hypothetical pediatric case scenarios with varying symptoms and deterioration.
- Assessment of parental and physician responses regarding when to seek general practitioner consultation.
Main Results:
- Parents sought help earlier than physicians advised for non-urgent rhinitis but later for urgent headache and limping.
- Parents were more concerned about fever than physicians; loss of appetite was not a significant concern for either group.
- Parents missed critical red flags like drowsiness and refusal to stand; lower education and higher prior healthcare use correlated with earlier help-seeking.
Conclusions:
- Parents may not recognize critical red flags in urgent pediatric situations.
- Certain non-urgent symptoms can prompt parental help-seeking, indicating a perception gap.
- Enhanced communication and mutual education are necessary to align parental and physician expectations and improve child healthcare outcomes.
Objective:
Whenever a child falls ill, parents need to decide whether there is a need to contact medical professionals. Parental and physician perspectives on the severity of a child's illness differ. We aimed to determine triggers for help-seeking among parents.
Design And Setting:
We conducted a survey study among 200 parents. In four hypothetical case scenarios, an acutely ill child was described with a baseline symptom (abdominal pain, rhinitis, headache, limping), with deterioration over time. Parents had to answer when they would contact the general practitioner. Fifty-four physicians received the same case scenarios.
Main Outcome Measures:
Parents and physicians did not differ significantly in help-seeking in the abdominal pain case. In the non-urgent rhinitis case, parents sought help earlier than physicians wished them to, while in the urgent illness cases of headache and limping parents tend to seek help later than physicians wished. Rising body temperature was more alarming to parents than physicians, while loss of appetite did not concern either group. Parents did not recognise several red flags, for example, drowsiness and refusal to stand. Low educated parents and parents with a history of more frequent healthcare use were inclined to seek help earlier.
Implication Of Results:
In urgent cases, parents do not seem to recognise red flags, while some non-urgent symptoms trigger them to seek help. This reveals a need for mutual education. Physician awareness of a perception gap could help them adjust their communication and empower parents.
Related Concept Videos
01:17Ethical Dilemmas I
Let us explore some examples to understand the potentially complex moral decisions nurses face.
Take the case of caring for minors, particularly in areas related to reproductive...
01:30Ethical Dilemmas II
01:08Obedience
01:27Ethical Issues
Ethical Concerns in Healthcare:
01:27Parenting Styles
Authoritarian Parenting
This style is strict and controlling, with little room for open dialogue. Authoritarian parents demand obedience and often enforce rules with minimal warmth. Children raised this way may lack social skills and initiative, usually comparing themselves to others unfavorably.
Authoritative...
01:23Influence of Parents and Peers on Identity
Parental Influence on Identity Development
Parents serve as primary guides and managers in an adolescent's life, offering support instrumental in decision-making and personal growth....