The care ethics of child health nurses in Danish asylum centers: An ethnographic study

Abstract

Abstract Background Asylum-seeking children have often been on a harrowing journey with potentially grave consequences for their health and well-being. As little is known about how child health nurses enter into engaging and caring partnerships with asylum-seeking families to meet their children's healthcare needs - despite challenges pertaining to culture and language - our objective is to examine how child health nurses navigate, negotiate and respond to the range of challenges, needs and circumstances that affect their nursing care practices. Methods We report on ethnographic fieldwork from four Danish Red Cross asylum centers, where child health nurses have their first encounters with asylum-seeking families. The fieldwork included participant observations of child health consultations and interviews with 6 child health nurses and 11 asylum-seeking families. We coded and analyzed the empirical material thematically to identify emerging and crosscutting themes. Results The care performed by the child health nurses was characterized by five ethical care practices. One, their care was driven by compassion, exhibiting intrinsic beliefs, values and personal motivations to care for asylum-seeking children. Two, they provided responsible care, building on their humanitarian and professional roles as child health nurses within Red Cross. Three, they showed flexibility, drawing on past experience and recognition of the families' complex needs. Four, they were collaborative, working in partnership with parents. Five, the child health nurses' care was empowering asylum-seeking families by encouraging parents to be autonomous and acknowledging their own efforts in caring for their children. Conclusions The confluence of the five ethical care practices enables child health nurses to promote and safeguard the health and well-being of asylum-seeking children. We argue that these practices are constituent parts of person-centered care for asylum-seeking and refugee children. Key messages We identified five ethical care practices, which enable child health nurses’ care of asylum-seeking children and their families. Our study provides an empirical understanding of how person-centered care is critical to asylum-seeking families.