Nurses' views on the presence of family members during invasive procedures in hospitalised children: A questionnaire survey.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: (I) To identify the opinion and practices of nursing professionals regarding the presence of family members during invasive procedures in hospitalised children; (II) to determine the knowledge of nursing professionals about the patient-and family-centred care model.

BACKGROUND: Family presence in invasive procedures benefits the patient and their relatives, but varied attitudes exist among healthcare personnel, with some being favourable and others unfavourable toward family presence.

DESIGN: Observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study.

METHODS: Study population: Nurses from paediatric critical care services, emergency services, hospital wards, day hospitals and outpatient clinics at a Catalan tertiary hospital who participated voluntarily between September 2021 and July 2022. Data collection instrument: A questionnaire prepared by the researchers, based on the literature and reviewed by experts. REDCap link with access to the questionnaire was sent out to potential respondents through the institutional email. Bivariate analysis was performed with the R 4.2 program. The study was approved by the hospital's Clinical Research Committee and participants gave informed consent before responding to the questionnaire.

RESULTS: A total of 172 nurses participated, and 155 valid responses were obtained. All respondents consider the family as a key element in paediatric care and report inviting family members to participate in the care given to their child. However, 12.0% of nurses do not invite the family to be present in invasive procedures. Almost all respondents note the need for training to acquire communication skills and improve the management of emotions.

CONCLUSIONS: The results show a favourable opinion towards the presence of family members and highlight the need to train nurses to develop communication skills.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: The data provided can favour the design of measures to improve and promote the presence of parents during invasive procedures, reinforcing the patient-and family-centred care model and improving the quality of care provided. One example is the creation of family care protocols where the inclusion of parents and the roles of each individual involved in the care process appears.