Caring Existentially and Spiritually for Young Children and Close Grandchildren of Life-Threatened Cancer Patients in Secularized Denmark.

Autor: Viftrup DT; Associate Professor, Research Unit for General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark. Electronic address: dtviftrup@health.sdu.dk., Voetmann SS; PhD Student, Research Unit for General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Seminars in oncology nursing [Semin Oncol Nurs] 2023 Oct; Vol. 39 (5), pp. 151484. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Aug 04.
DOI: 10.1016/j.soncn.2023.151484
Abstrakt: Purpose: When children are given opportunities to talk about their existential and spiritual concerns and needs, different health risks related to parents' illness and death may be reduced. The existential and spiritual care and conversations provided during parents' and close grandparents' cancer illness are insufficient. This article presents a practical and theoretical perspective on how to care for the existential and spiritual needs of children at three different age stages.
Data Sources: Data from a research project guided the process of synthesizing the theoretical aspects with the practical. The theoretical perspective comprises Majbrit Guldin's theory of children's age-related grief reactions and James Fowler's three stages about children's spiritual and cognitive development. The empirical study is based on qualitative interviews with 16 children or close grandchildren of cancer patients at hospice.
Conclusion: The theoretical and practical perspective function as a guide for existential and spiritual care and conversation with children at three different ages. The preschool child needs adults to support their growing spirituality and help them show, express, and understand their feelings. The school-aged child needs adults who listen to and acknowledge the child's understandings, experiences, and feelings as well as challenge their rigid thinking. The young adult needs adults who are willing to be there for them physically, mentally, socially, and spiritually in a genuine relationship.
Implications for Nursing Practice: The perspective might function well for nurses and other health professionals as it is generic and addresses barriers for communication with children found in different healthcare contexts.
Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
(Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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