Abstract
Objectives The aim of this study was to determine how pediatric patients and their parents perceive health care during hospital stays, what are their expectations of doctor behaviors, and which components of care do they consider to be the most important. Methods A qualitative descriptive study was carried out using the open interview technique. Twenty-six parents and 22 children undergoing hospital treatment participated. Results Our analysis identified two major themes: (1) doctor verbal and non-verbal behaviors, which included informing and explaining, conversations on topics other than the illness, tone of voice and other behaviors; and (2) perceived strategies used by doctors. This category included claims of doctors’ intentional use of medical jargon to avoid addressing parental questions directly. Parents admitted that they did not understand medical vocabulary, but they also thought they might understand more of the medical issues if the doctor spoke using terms comprehensible to them. Conlcusions Our study shows the importance of interpersonal relationship affecting patient perception of quality of pediatric care. Parents of pediatric patients perceive that doctors behave in ways that deflect parents’ questions and avoid providing them with medical information. Such behaviors include doctors excusing themselves by saying they are busy and using medical jargon. Medical students and doctors should be trained to communicate effectively with patients and their parents and develop skills to convey information in a simple and comprehensible way.
Highlights
Measuring patients’ experience is essential in assessing the quality of health care, as it offers the possibility to determine which aspects of care are important for patients and which aspects need to be improved [1]
Conlcusions Our study shows the importance of interpersonal relationship affecting patient perception of quality of pediatric care
Over 45 years ago, Korsch et al [4] described the results of a qualitative study of the doctor–patient interaction based on an analysis of 800 tape recordings of patient visits and interviews with parents
Summary
Measuring patients’ experience is essential in assessing the quality of health care, as it offers the possibility to determine which aspects of care are important for patients and which aspects need to be improved [1]. Over 45 years ago, Korsch et al [4] described the results of a qualitative study of the doctor–patient interaction based on an analysis of 800 tape recordings of patient visits and interviews with parents. The study revealed the importance of the patient’s own ideas about the illness, the family’s expectations of the medical visit, and the need to deal with those concerns. The barriers were: a notable lack of warmth and friendliness, failure to take into consideration the patient’s fears and expectations of the visit, lack of clear explanations concerning the diagnosis and causes of the illness, and the use of medical jargon [4]. The importance of receiving information and clear communication related to pediatric care is important for both parents and children [5, 6]
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