The Importance Of Family Centred Care

By providing Family Centred Care and allowing the presence of a primary care giver it is not only important for the emotional health of a hospitalised child, it can also help the family to feel involved in the care and decision making, it also allows parents to remain in control of their child and have a positive effect on the family’s health as a whole, with reports showing that the biggest cause of stress for parents of hospitalised children is the lack of parental control (Corlett & Twycross, 2006) this can lead to further health issues for the parents if they are under great stress with figures showing that almost half of parents who have a critically ill child suffer post-traumatic stress and depression (Lautrette, Darmon & Megarbane
,2007) A hospitalised child not only effects the parents but also the emotional wellbeing of siblings, when a poorly child is hospitalised it is a big change for the well sibling, the change in routine and parents reduced time spent at home can have a negative effect on the child’s behaviour they can show anger and jealousy but also signs of abandonment if they feel they aren’t receiving adequate attention and emotional support.

The implementation of play specialists and child psychologists within children’s wards is not only for the benefit of the sick child but can also help with the emotional wellbeing of the siblings, they can help well siblings cope with their siblings being hospitalised and understand the changes in routine (Great Ormond Street Hospital, 2018b) The creation of parent accommodation at hospitals such as Morgan Stanley House built 2007 at Great Ormond Street hospital allowing families to have close access to their sick child on a 24 hour basis whilst still being able to rest and relax themselves, which is important for their mental health, with parents describing these facilities as being a big help for them mentally in such a traumatic and stressful time (Great Ormond Street Hospital, 2018c) therefore family centred care is important to protect the health and wellbeing of the entire family during a traumatic time.
The Department of Health (2010) National Framework for children and young people’s Continuing care, states that there should be involvement of children and their families in designing packages of care for the patient and everyone’s opinions on the patient’ care are valid and should be considered.
It also goes on to further state that where needed language interpreters and communication aids such as sign language should be used to discuss treatment with both the child and the family members in order to include them in all decisions and parents with any learning difficulties or special needs should receive further help whilst their child is ill. The framework also enforces the need to work as part of a multidisciplinary team with other professionals such as Learning Disability Teams, Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAHMS) and with this creating a Family Care Plan. Family centred care is of great importance when nursing a sick child, allowing parents to contribute in decision making is an important part of this process however the rights of the child should be adhered too at all times, The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) seeks to protect children where they cannot protect themselves, this relates to hospital decision making. Where families have certain beliefs and cultures this may not always be in the best interest of a sick child, for example some religions such as Jehovah witness do not allow blood transfusions as part of their
belief and this life saving treatment may be declined by the family, whilst healthcare professionals strive to implement family centred care and include parents and families in all decision making, if a decision is not in the best interest of the child then a decision will be made without the consent of family members and over ridden by the court (Campbell, 2017), thus adhering to article 6.1 of the Convention of the Rights of the Child declaring “every child has the inherent right to life” (UNCRC, 1989). Relating back to infant mortality rates in 19th century Britain the UNCRC declared that the state should take appropriate measures to diminish infant and child mortality rates and also provide sufficient ante-natal and post-natal care to pregnant mothers to further enforce the child’s right to adequate healthcare through pregnancy and birth.
In current times nurses and midwives work to the standards of The Nursing and Midwifery Council which was introduced to the healthcare industry in April 2002, this acts as a regulator for the safe and fair practice of nurses and midwives who adhere to the articles of “The Code” such as article 3 advising that a patients physical, social and psychological needs are responded to (The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), 2015) this further enforces and recognises the need to assess a child’s mental wellbeing whilst being hospitalised with previous studies and reports from Bowlby and such like suggesting a child’s mental wellbeing is affected by parental separation therefore it is a nurses responsibility to promote family centred care and encourage the presence of parents and primary caregivers at all times.
The care provided to hospitalised children has improved dramatically since 19th century Britain, with the implementation of Family Centred Care and studies from Bowlby and Robertson influencing the recommendations of the Platt Report which changed the way hospitals viewed the needs of sick children, their mental wellbeing and effects of illness not only on the child but also their families. With this, not only providing unrestricted access to their hospitalised child but also creating parent accommodation on hospital grounds. The implementation of play specialists and child psychologists are vital in helping children and siblings to understand and cope with the changes to their family life ultimately recognising that health care doesn’t end at the sick patient within the hospital with the implementation of family care plans after discharge and other sources of support during such a traumatic time not only improves the recovery and health of the sick child but of their entire family.