A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE THERAPEUTIC TEAM’ ATTITUDES TOWARDS THE PRESENCE OF PARENTS DURING INVASIVE PROCEDURES

Background: Often first crises faced by the child is illness and hospitalization. About 30% of children at least once and about 5% several times experience hospitalization in a lifetime. Objectives:This study aims to determine and compare attitudes of therapeutic teams towards the presence of parents during invasive procedures.Methods: For the purpose of conducting this descriptive-analytic research, 40 nurses working in pediatric wards, 19 pediatricians, 16 hospital managers, and 100 parents of children hospitalized in pediatric wards of hospitals affiliated to Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences in 2014, participated as the sample. The data were collected through the census survey using a demographic questionnaire and a researcher-made questionnaire containing 22 items for measuring attitudes. Data analysis was also performed using descriptive (mean and standard deviation) and analytic (chi-square test) statistics as well as the SPSS software version 19.Results: Based on the results obtained in this study, 65.3% of medical staff and 71% of parents were in favor of the presence of parents at their child's bedside when performing invasive procedures. In addition, the results showed that socio-cultural level, the invasive level of the procedure, doctor's request, and parents' and children's request were among the factors affecting the presence of parents in such situations. Further, lack of parental behavioral control, parental anxiety, interfering in the medical staff working procedures, and causing anxiety by parents among the medical staff are among the barriers to effective presence of parents. Conclusion: performing invasive procedures on children, by finding promoting and limiting factors of parents' presence, a comprehensive guideline could be formulated in order to make an effective step towards the rights of hospitalized children and their parents Keywords: Parents, Therapeutic team attitude, invasive procedures