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The impact of critical incidents in paediatric hospitals: a review
Insights
Critical incidents in hospitals significantly impact children, families, and staff, especially in pediatric intensive care and oncology units. This review discusses coping strategies for severe trauma, life-threatening illness, and death in pediatric care settings.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric healthcare
- Trauma and critical care
- Child psychology
Background:
- Critical incidents are significant events in pediatric healthcare settings.
- These incidents profoundly affect hospitalized children, their families, and healthcare professionals.
- Specific units like pediatric intensive care, burns, oncology, and emergency departments are particularly affected.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review literature on critical incidents involving hospitalized children.
- To discuss the circumstances that lead to critical incidents.
- To present strategies for coping with trauma, severe illness, and death in pediatric hospitals.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of critical incidents in pediatric healthcare.
- Analysis of factors contributing to critical incidents.
- Identification and presentation of coping strategies.
Main Results:
- Critical incidents have a substantial impact on children and their families.
- Nursing staff in specialized pediatric units experience significant effects.
- Various strategies can assist in coping with severe trauma and end-of-life care.
Conclusions:
- Understanding critical incidents is crucial for pediatric patient and family support.
- Support systems are essential for healthcare staff, particularly nurses, in high-stress environments.
- Effective coping strategies can mitigate the adverse effects of critical incidents in pediatric care.
Abstract:
Literature addressing critical incidents involving hospitalised children is reviewed and circumstances that produce critical incidents are discussed. It is argued that critical incidents often have a major impact on children and their families and on staff, and particularly nursing staff, in paediatric intensive care and burns, oncology and emergency units. Some strategies for assisting children, families and staff to cope with severe trauma, life-threatening illness and death in paediatric hospitals are presented.