The First Stay in a Pediatric Rheumatology Ward: Associations between Parent Satisfaction and Disease and Psychosocial Factors

Abstract

To assess parent satisfaction with hospital care and needs for improvement, questionnaires were sent to parents of children participating in a study of bio-psychosocial factors at the onset of juvenile rheumatic diseases. At 16 months follow-up (range 12–22 months) 85 (82%) of 106 parents answered. Twenty-four of these were also interviewed. 95–98% of parents were satisfied with the way they had been received, the ward setup and the atmosphere, the examination of the child by the physicians and the examination and treatment by the physiotherapists, whereas 86% were satisfied with information regarding illness and treatment, and 78% were satisfied with the hospital school. Dissatisfaction was positively correlated to mental distress of the mothers at the first stay and their assessment of disease severity at follow-up. The interviewed parents seemed to prefer inpatient care to outpatient care for the initial multiprofessional assessment. This may enhance the initial process of coping with chronic childhood illness and increase compliance with treatment regimens.

Key Words:

• Key words: parent satisfaction
• hospital care
• juvenile rheumatic disease