Nurses’ perceptions of parent empowerment in chronic illness

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

18 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Background: Parent empowerment is upheld as a creative strategy to provide a family-centred care in chronic childhood illness. However identifying and measuring parent empowerment practices are ambiguous probably due to the subjective nature of the concept. Aim: To explore nurses’ perception of parent empowerment in chronic illness. Design Qualitative descriptive design. Method: Three focus group interviews were conducted among a purposeful sample of child health nurses (N =14) and the data was analysed using qualitative content analysis strategy. Results: The participantsidentifi ed that empowered parents are able to take care of their child in a safe and structured way at home. An atmosphere of trust, open communication, shared decision making, support and parental readiness to accept their child’s care led to parent empowerment. Nurse’s role was identified as an advocate for the child and the family and, as a frontline worker whofill the gap between parent and the multidisciplinary team. Conclusion and relevance to clinical practice: Educating parents about their child’s condition, teaching them the needed new skills, and offering and providing them with support services are identified as the parent empowerment strategies. It is recommended that further training and clear clinical guidelines are needed to accomplish parent empowerment.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)210-219
Number of pages10
JournalContemporary Nurse
Volume45
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2013
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • parent empowerment, chronic illness, nurses' perceptions

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