Paediatric inpatient setting: An evaluation of parental perspectives

摘要

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (2008) define the standards of conduct, ethics and performance for nurses and midwives of nursing currently practicing in the UK. The Code places emphasis on the core nursing principles of kindness, respect, dignity and support for patients and relatives while under nursing care. A prospective study was conducted using a validated questionnaire to assess adherence to these core nursing principles on the basis of parental assessment in an orthopaedic paediatric inpatient unit at University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire (UHCW). Core nursing standards were highest in respect to 'kindness' and 'respect' shown for patients (96% and 98% positive scores) and lowest for 'support' offered to their parents (89% positive scores). Lower 'support' scores possibly relate to information provision or emotional support. Improvement may be achieved via provision of additional time to identify parental concerns, which may be non-medical. The results demonstrate that parents perceive core nursing principles to be strongly adhered to on the orthopaedic paediatric unit at UHCW.