Evaluation of a nurse education workshop on children’s grief

Abstract

This paper provides an overview of the development and evaluation of an educational program to increase the knowledge of hospice and paediatric nurses who support grieving children and improve their attitudes toward death and bereavement. The specific target groups for the project included nurses providing care through community-based hospice services and inpatient palliative care units, as well as nurses providing inpatient and community-based care at a children's teaching hospital. Fifty-nine nurses from hospice, community and inpatient settings participated in three workshops. Results indicated that the workshop produced a sustained improvement in bereavement knowledge among the nurses and an improvement in their attitudes toward death and bereavement.

Paediatric palliative care: a systematic review

“…A variety of study designs were employed, and the most common form of evaluation, 26 of 38 articles (68%), was to use a questionnaire without a control group 16–41. Twenty-four articles had a quantitative design 18 22–28 30–32 36–48. Ten articles combined quantitative and qualitative methods 16 17 19–21 29 33–35 49.…”

“…Most of the articles (23 articles, 61%)16 18 23 24 26 28 30–35 37 38 40 42 43 45–49 52 describe the transfer from care provided by general paediatric healthcare professionals to specialised paediatric palliative care services (online supplementary file 4). In the programmes (10 articles, 26%) were the goals to achieve symptom management for the child and family 17 19–21 32 33 38 40 42 47.…”

“…Three studies focused on neonatal care in the hospital 46 48 52. Two studies included both nurses in adult care and paediatric nurses,28 35 and one study was not conducted in paediatric care 51…”

Health Connections

“…Typically, children are not in a position parallel to adults and do not grieve the same way as their elders (Jellinek, Patel, & Froehle, 2002;Lyles, 2005;National Cancer Institute, 2006;O'Toole & McWhirter, 1988;Rando, 1984;Worden, 1996). For them, the cumulative effects of unresolved grief can be enduring and compromising (Kristjanson, Cousins, Macpherson, Dadd, & Watkins, 2005).…”

“…Psychosocial well-being is essential for children's survival and development particularly in enduring situations (Kristjanson et al, 2005). Psychosocial interventions and methods that enhance children's, families', and communities' capacities to cope with the devastation of HIV/AIDS are needed in Zambia (Kelley, 2006;UNICEF, 2004aUNICEF, /2004b).…”