Preferences of hospitalized adolescents for information providers

The purposes of this study were to determine: (1) what are the preferences of hospitalized adolescents for information providers (parent(s), health professionals, or both parent(s) and health professionals); and (2) criteria to predict preferences, based on significant relationships between preferences and selected variables (sex, illness, length of illness, question topics, parental preference for information providers, length of hospitalization, number of previous hospitalizations, and age). A nonexperimental survey of 40 hospitalized adolescents utilized questionnaires to identify preferences of adolescents and 25 parents. Preferences were related to adolescent age and question topic. Age was statistically significant but the other variables were not. Adolescent preferences and that of their parents varied widely. Anecdotal information presented clarification of adolescent and parental preferences. The study results demonstrate that hospitalized adolescents have preferences for information providers and are willing to state those preferences when asked. Health professionals need to weigh these preferences with those of their own when delivering information to hospitalized adolescents. Replication of the study and variations of the design are suggested for further research.