Translational Research - The Linkage between Family-Centered Care and Improved Health Outcomes for Children and their Families

The Effect of Simulation Training on Enhancing Nursing Students' Perceptions to Incorporate Patients' Families Into Treatment Plans: A Randomized Experimental Study

INTRODUCTION

As clinical placement in bachelor's nursing programs becomes increasingly difficult, simulation is becoming increasingly common to enhance learning. Blended learning incorporating simulation videos provides students with the opportunity to observe and learn from exemplary practices while bridging the gap between theoretical knowledge and its practical application. This study aimed to investigate the effect of simulation training on enhancing nursing students' perception of integrating patient's families' assessments into their treatment plan.

METHODS

A quantitative, experimental research design was used, with a control (56) and intervention group (67) from levels 7 and 8 senior nursing students at King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, College of Nursing, Jeddah, assigned randomly to each group. The tool consists of three sections: personal information, a Van Gelderen family rubric, and a role-play survey. The validity and reliability of the tools were confirmed by the original developer. In the current study, the reported Cronbach's alpha was 95%.

RESULTS

A total of 123 students participated in the study. Their ages ranged between 19 and 23 years and 23 years and above, with a mean age of 21.3 ± 1.3 among the control group and 22.2 ± 1.1 among the experimental group. There was an improvement in the mean scores in the post-training phase compared to the pre-training phase in the experimental group, with a statistically significant difference at p < 0.05. However, there were no significant differences noted between the control and experimental groups in the pre-training phase compared to the statistically significant difference noted between the two groups in the post-training phase.

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The findings of the study indicated that the utilization of scenario-based standardized patient-simulated exercises, guided by dedicated faculty and accompanied by reflective debriefing exercises, proved to be an effective approach for bridging the gap between theoretical knowledge and its application in clinical practice. Therefore, the study prompts curriculum revisions to incorporate family assessment into nursing practices, as well as evidence-based strategies, such as learning activities that use standardized patient or high-fidelity simulation technology to address and possibly reduce the theory-practice gap for graduates when entering clinical practice.

The Relationship Between Unmet Needs of Parents with Hospitalized Children and the Level of Parental Anxiety in Iran

PURPOSE

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between parents' unmet needs with hospitalized children and the level of parental anxiety.

DESIGN AND METHODS

This correlational study was conducted on 194 parents with hospitalized children. The data were collected using the questionnaires of "revised needs of parents with hospitalized children" and "Zung's anxiety scale". The data were then analyzed through descriptive and inferential statistics using SPSS software version 19.

RESULTS

There was a very weak positive relationship between the number of unmet needs of the sick child and the physical symptoms of anxiety (P = 0.038, r = 0.149) and overall anxiety score (P = 0.018, r = 0.17). However, there was no significant relationship between the number of unmet needs in other groups. Also, there was no significant relationship between the total number of unmet needs and parental anxiety. The most frequent unmet needs of parents, respectively, belonged to 1) support and guidance, 2) needs of other family members, and 3) comfort.

CONCLUSIONS

It might not be possible to obviate all the parental needs during the child's hospitalization. It is noteworthy that failure to meet those parental needs directly related to the child may cause anxiety for the parents.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

Meeting the needs of parents regarding support and guidance, comfort, other family members, and needs directly related to the child is recommended to prioritize in pediatric nursing care.

Families' Experiences Living with Acquired Brain Injury: "Thinking Family"-A Nursing Pathway for Family-Centered Care

The objective of this study was to examine families' experiences living with acquired brain injury (ABI) using a research approach that included both the affected individual family member and the family together as a family group. A narrative inquiry study, informed by the life-stage approach of Lieblich, Tuval-Mashiach, and Zilber, was used to obtain family stories. Families experiencing an ABI event were purposefully selected from different regions in a western Canadian province. Centered on the life stages of before the ABI event, now living with the ABI, and the future, thematic findings included: Families, a grounding force; Losses, individual and family; Family adaptive capacities; Experiences with the healthcare system-hospital to home; and A patchwork future-entering the unknown. Themes affirmed the significant impacts of ABI on individual and family members and acknowledged ABI as an ambiguous loss event. The findings also illuminated families' strengths and resiliencies in coping with living with ABI. The study results suggest by “thinking family” nurses can contribute towards a healthcare model that focuses on “family” as the central unit of care.

Child-rearing experiences and home environment concerns among Southeast Asian immigrant mothers in transnational marriage families in Taiwan

AIMS

To explore the child-rearing experiences of immigrant mothers and their concerns about children's home environments in the contexts of transnational marriage families and non-native culture.

BACKGROUND

Immigrant mothers are often disadvantaged by a relative lack of information on and access to children's healthcare, but little research exists on the experiences of mothers in transnational marriage families as they attempt to provide a secure home environment while navigate an unfamiliar culture.

DESIGN

A descriptive phenomenological research design based on intuition was employed to explore immigrant mothers' unique lived reality through their subjective experiences and perceptions.

METHODS

Semi-structured interviews with 15 immigrant mothers from 15 transnational marriage families were conducted between May 2016-February 2017. Narratives were analyzed using the descriptive phenomenological method because it permits systematic discovery of the lived experiences from the perspective of the study's participants.

RESULTS

Three major themes were identified: (a) striving to maintain a secure home for children; (b) suffering and struggling with difficulties; and (c) trying to overcome difficulties and build an adequate family environment. The essential, prevailing concept of immigrant mothers' experience in child-rearing was identified as 'Where my child is, is home.'

CONCLUSION

Immigrant mothers bond emotionally and physically to their new land via their children. Their child-raising experiences are interwoven with their roles in their new familial and cultural homes.

IMPACT

Immigrant brides often become mothers soon after marrying to continue their husbands' family line. Understanding their unique child-rearing experiences and challenges in providing a secure home in a non-native culture will help nurses provide effective care. Study results will benefit paediatric/family nurses in any setting where care for transnational marriage families is provided, those families themselves, public policymakers and future researchers.