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Parents' faith and hope during the pediatric palliative phase and the association with long-term parental adjustment

Parents' faith and hope during the pediatric palliative phase and the association with long-term parental adjustment
Parents' faith and hope during the pediatric palliative phase and the association with long-term parental adjustment
BACKGROUND: The loss of a child is associated with an increased risk for developing psychological problems. However, studies investigating the impact of parents' faith and hope for a cure during the palliative phase on long-term parental psychological functioning are limited.

OBJECTIVE: The study's objective was to explore the role of faith and hope as a source of coping and indicator of long-term parental adjustment.

METHODS: Eighty-nine parents of 57 children who died of cancer completed questionnaires retrospectively, exploring faith, hope, and sources of coping, and measuring parents' current level of grief and depression.

RESULTS: For 19 parents (21%) faith was very important during the palliative phase. The majority of parents remained hopeful for a meaningful time with their child (n=68, 76%); a pain-free death (n=58, 65%); and a cure (n=30, 34%). Their child (n=70, 79%) was parents' main source of coping. Twelve parents (14%) suffered from traumatic grief, and 22 parents (25%) showed symptoms of depression. Parents' faith was not associated with less long-term traumatic grief (OR=0.86, p=0.51) or symptoms of depression (OR=0.95, p=0.74), and parents' hope for a cure was not related to more long-term traumatic grief (OR=1.07, p=0.71) or symptoms of depression (OR=1.12, p=0.47).

CONCLUSIONS: Faith was important for a minority of parents and was not associated with less long-term traumatic grief or symptoms of depression. The majority of parents remained hopeful. Hope for a cure was not associated with more long-term traumatic grief or symptoms of depression.
1096-6218
402-407
van der Geest, Ivana M.M.
b3e44c5a-03a8-40cf-8485-fb3307c2a302
van den Heuvel-Eibrink, Marry M.
093a9aa2-cb40-4839-b6e5-50cfbfb9df15
Falkenburg, Nette
36abf63a-e78b-4c0b-ae68-97dc42740742
Michiels, Erna M.C.
c738c978-2d6d-45f8-a7c4-aa3a04673a07
van Vliet, Liesbeth
caa63645-74bf-4155-80f3-f76f754feec4
Pieters, Rob
958e8db6-8c78-4019-ac64-d9b46a80670f
Darlington, Anne-Sophie E.
472fcfc9-160b-4344-8113-8dd8760ff962
van der Geest, Ivana M.M.
b3e44c5a-03a8-40cf-8485-fb3307c2a302
van den Heuvel-Eibrink, Marry M.
093a9aa2-cb40-4839-b6e5-50cfbfb9df15
Falkenburg, Nette
36abf63a-e78b-4c0b-ae68-97dc42740742
Michiels, Erna M.C.
c738c978-2d6d-45f8-a7c4-aa3a04673a07
van Vliet, Liesbeth
caa63645-74bf-4155-80f3-f76f754feec4
Pieters, Rob
958e8db6-8c78-4019-ac64-d9b46a80670f
Darlington, Anne-Sophie E.
472fcfc9-160b-4344-8113-8dd8760ff962

van der Geest, Ivana M.M., van den Heuvel-Eibrink, Marry M., Falkenburg, Nette, Michiels, Erna M.C., van Vliet, Liesbeth, Pieters, Rob and Darlington, Anne-Sophie E. (2015) Parents' faith and hope during the pediatric palliative phase and the association with long-term parental adjustment. Journal of Palliative Medicine, 18 (5), 402-407. (doi:10.1089/jpm.2014.0287). (PMID:25679453)

Record type: Article

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The loss of a child is associated with an increased risk for developing psychological problems. However, studies investigating the impact of parents' faith and hope for a cure during the palliative phase on long-term parental psychological functioning are limited.

OBJECTIVE: The study's objective was to explore the role of faith and hope as a source of coping and indicator of long-term parental adjustment.

METHODS: Eighty-nine parents of 57 children who died of cancer completed questionnaires retrospectively, exploring faith, hope, and sources of coping, and measuring parents' current level of grief and depression.

RESULTS: For 19 parents (21%) faith was very important during the palliative phase. The majority of parents remained hopeful for a meaningful time with their child (n=68, 76%); a pain-free death (n=58, 65%); and a cure (n=30, 34%). Their child (n=70, 79%) was parents' main source of coping. Twelve parents (14%) suffered from traumatic grief, and 22 parents (25%) showed symptoms of depression. Parents' faith was not associated with less long-term traumatic grief (OR=0.86, p=0.51) or symptoms of depression (OR=0.95, p=0.74), and parents' hope for a cure was not related to more long-term traumatic grief (OR=1.07, p=0.71) or symptoms of depression (OR=1.12, p=0.47).

CONCLUSIONS: Faith was important for a minority of parents and was not associated with less long-term traumatic grief or symptoms of depression. The majority of parents remained hopeful. Hope for a cure was not associated with more long-term traumatic grief or symptoms of depression.

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Accepted/In Press date: 22 December 2014
e-pub ahead of print date: 13 February 2015
Published date: May 2015
Organisations: Faculty of Health Sciences

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 380014
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/380014
ISSN: 1096-6218
PURE UUID: 3a504058-c543-4cd1-8ead-137ff2b524e7

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Date deposited: 01 Sep 2015 12:34
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 20:52

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Contributors

Author: Ivana M.M. van der Geest
Author: Marry M. van den Heuvel-Eibrink
Author: Nette Falkenburg
Author: Erna M.C. Michiels
Author: Liesbeth van Vliet
Author: Rob Pieters

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