The perspectives of parents and healthcare professionals towards parental needs and support from healthcare professionals during the first two years of children’s lives

Figures & data

Table AI. Characteristics of the parents who participated in the study (total N = 38)

Female, n (%)	36 (94.7)
Male, n (%)	2 (5,3%)
Number pregnant at time of interview, n (%)	3 (7.9)
Age in years, mean (range)	31.2 (22–41)
Education level, n (%)  Low  Middle  High  Missing data	3 (7.9) 10 (26.3) 17 (44.7) 8 (21.1)
Ethnic background, n (%)  Turkish  Moroccan  Dutch  Other ethnicities	12 (31.6) 8 (21.1) 6 (15.7) 12 (31.6)
Country of birth
The Netherlands	27 (71,1)
Other	11 (28,9)
Living with, n (%)  Extended family  Nuclear family	3 (7.9) 35 (92.1)
Number of children, n (%)  1  2  3  4	21 (55.3) 12 (31.5) 3 (7.9) 2 (5.3)
Age of infant in months, mean (range)  Age categories of infants, n (%)  0–3 months  3–6 months  6–12 months  12–24 months	10.0 (2–24) 3 (7.9) 10 (26.3) 7 (18.4) 18 (47.4)

Table

Food How are you getting on with feeding your child? Are you breastfeeding or bottle feeding? What and how much does your child eat? Why did you decide to breastfeed or bottle feed your child? What was the transition from liquid to solid food like? When did you start giving your child solid food? What did you give them? What kind of problems did you experience? What kind of problems are you experiencing in relation to feeding? What influences the type of food and drink you give your child? Sleep How are things going with your child’s sleeping? How does your child sleep? Do you think your child is getting enough sleep? What do you do to get a better night’s sleep? What kind of problems are you experiencing in relation to sleep? Physical activity What kind of activities do you do with your child? Do you think your child is active enough? What kind of physical activities do you do with your child? Screen use What do you think about young children using screens? Do you use a screen? When or why do you use a screen? How long should a child watch TV or use other electronic devices with a screen? Do you put any limitations on screen use? Daily struggles What problems do you face when it comes to caring for your child? What type of information do you need about caring for your child? Do you receive support in caring for your child? Who from and what kind of support? How does your environment influence the healthy growth and development of your child? (barriers and facilitators) What do you need to stimulate the healthy growth and development of your child? Perceived support Who gives you support in caring for your child? Who can you talk to if you want to discuss concerns about your child’s health or behaviours? (other parents, family, professionals) Health status How would you describe a healthy child? What role do food, sleep and physical activity play in the healthy growth of your child? How would you assess the health status of your child?

Table

Health status (green cards) S. If parents eat healthy food at home, a child will adopt the same behaviour. S. It is not a matter for concern if an infant/toddler is chubby; he/she will grow out of it. S. Watching TV is good for a child’s development. S. If children are overweight during infancy, they are usually overweight when they are older.

Motherhood (pink cards) Q. How healthy do you feel? (How would you describe your own health?) Q. As a mother, how do you know what your infant needs? S. As a mother, you put the interests of your child first: your own health is less important. Q. How would you describe your maternal instinct?

Fatherhood (blue cards) Q. In what way is your husband involved in the care of your child(ren)? Q. What is the role of a father during pregnancy? Q. How would you describe the influence of your husband on your child(ren)?

Extended family (yellow cards) S. If my mother/mother-in-law gives my child something unhealthy to eat, I don’t say anything about it. S. I accept my mother’s advice on motherhood. Q. What is the role of the extended family (grandmothers/grandfathers/uncles/aunts) in your children’s health?

Cultural influences (purple cards) Q. Does the advice you receive from Dutch healthcare providers fit in with your own culture? Q. What cultural differences are there when it comes to how you care for or bring up your infant?

Table

Parents express a need for: information in the right moment, which is practical and specific and fits with their own personal ideas and intuition

(2)Parents value support from people with experiential knowledge, and whom they trust

(3)Parents generally appreciate occasional health check-ups by healthcare professionals, especially from professional they know more personally.

(4)What parents find important in their contact with healthcare professionals is: • A non-judgemental and emphatic attitude • Flexibility when it comes to national health guidelines • Support that is tailored to their own child, not based on general statistics.

(5)We heard some example of miscommunications in the contact between parents and professionals. For instance, about why health professionals would like to know if the family is going on a holiday.

Examples of questions: • Do you recognize these issues? What are your thoughts on this? • What are your own experiences with regards to the issues we raised? • What do you find important when providing support to parents? • How do you attune to the needs of parents?