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Having a heart-to-heart: Parents' experiences preparing their child for a cardiac procedure
Sage Hay1, Jenny O'Neill1,2
1The Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
Insights
Preparing children for cardiac procedures requires empowering parents with tailored information and resources. This approach helps parents effectively communicate complex medical details, reducing child anxiety during congenital heart disease treatments.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Cardiology
- Child Psychology
- Healthcare Communication
Background:
- Lack of literature on preparing young children for cardiac procedures.
- Congenital heart disease (CHD) necessitates frequent medical interventions.
- Parental role in child preparation for medical procedures is crucial but underexplored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore parents' experiences preparing and supporting children (3-8 years) with CHD for cardiac procedures.
- To identify key themes in parental information needs and support strategies.
- To inform the development of better preparation resources for pediatric cardiac patients.
Main Methods:
- Exploratory descriptive qualitative study design.
- Semi-structured interviews with seven parents of children aged 3-8 years undergoing cardiac procedures.
- Reflexive thematic analysis of transcribed interview data.
Main Results:
- Four major themes emerged: evolving information needs, anticipating anxiety, honesty in information delivery, and the need for resources.
- Parents require support in translating medical information into child-appropriate explanations.
- Empowering parents is key to effectively preparing children for cardiac procedures.
Conclusions:
- Support for children undergoing cardiac procedures should prioritize equipping parents with resources and communication strategies.
- Interactive and relatable resources are needed to aid parents in preparing their children.
- Enhancing parental capacity can improve the child's procedural experience and reduce anxiety.
Abstract:
Cardiac procedures can be overwhelming for children and parents, with a lack of literature surrounding how healthcare professionals can assist parents in preparing young children for such procedures. This exploratory descriptive qualitative study sought to understand experiences of parents preparing and supporting their child with congenital heart disease, for an upcoming cardiac procedure. Parents of children, aged between three and eight years old, who had undergone a cardiac procedure at a tertiary paediatric hospital in Australia were invited to participate in an interview. Seven parents were interviewed, with recordings transcribed and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Four major themes identified were (1) evolving information needs; (2) anticipating anxiety; (3) honesty when delivering information; and (4) equipping parents with resources. Findings from this study emphasised that support for children prior to cardiac procedures must include empowering parents, as they know their child best. A key component of procedural preparation is helping parents navigate how to translate procedural information into explanations which are relatable and appropriate for their child. The development of interactive, relatable resources would allow parents to continue their child's preparation beyond the preadmission visit.
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