The presence and role of parents on the paediatric wards in Malta

Abstract

The literature favouring unrestricted access for parents on paediatric wards is considerable but in Malta, as late as 1991, parents were still prevented from staying with their children in hospital. Also, despite the international trends towards greater parental involvement in care, the role of the parent on the local wards was ambiguous. The purpose of this project was to identify likely factors accounting for the restricted presence of parents and to clarify their role on the paediatric wards. This project was conducted on the 3 paediatric wards at Karen Grech Hospital Paediatric Unit. Three samples, which consisted of 15 parents, 18 doctors and 20 Nurses were identified. A descriptive non experimental approach was chosen. A questionnaire was delivered to the doctors while the parents and nurses were addressed by means of a semi-standardized interview. Both quantitative and qualitative analysis was possible. The data revealed the nurses to be the least in favour of liberized visiting; they tended to view parents more negatively than the doctors. The parents appeared best able to identify whether or not their child needs them in hospital. It was also evident that parental involvement in care was limited with the parents being viewed more as 'visitors' than as 'partners in care'. Factors which could inhibit the presence and role of the parents on the local wards were identified. The implications of the project were discussed.