Browse by author
Lookup NU author(s): Dr Nicola HallORCiD, David Hamilton, Professor John SimpsonORCiD, Steven Powell, Dr Malcolm Brodlie, Jason PowellORCiD
Full text for this publication is not currently held within this repository. Alternative links are provided below where available.
© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2022. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ. OBJECTIVES: To explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the experiences of caregivers of children with tracheostomies. DESIGN: Qualitative semistructured interviews. SETTING: All participants were currently, or had previously cared for, a tracheostomised child who had attended a tertiary care centre in the North of England. Health professionals were purposively sampled to include accounts from a range of professions from primary, community, secondary and tertiary care. PARTICIPANTS: Carers of children with tracheostomies (n=34), including health professionals (n=17) and parents (n=17). INTERVENTIONS: Interviews were undertaken between July 2020 and February 2021 by telephone or video link. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Qualitative reflexive thematic analysis with QSR NVivo V.12. RESULTS: The pandemic has presented an additional and, for some, substantial challenge when caring for tracheostomised children, but this was not always felt to be the most overriding concern. Interviews demonstrated rapid adaptation, normalisation and varying degrees of stoicism and citizenship around constantly changing pandemic-related requirements, rules and regulations. This paper focuses on four key themes: 'reconceptualising safe care and safe places'; 'disrupted support and isolation'; 'relationships, trust and communication'; and 'coping with uncertainty and shifting boundaries of responsibility'. These are described within the context of the impact on the child, the emotional and physical well-being of carers and the challenges to maintaining the values of family-centred care. CONCLUSIONS: As we move to the next phase of the pandemic, we need to understand the impact on vulnerable groups so that their needs can be prioritised.
Author(s): Hall N, Rousseau N, Hamilton DW, Simpson AJ, Powell S, Brodlie M, Powell J
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Archives of Disease in Childhood
Year: 2022
Volume: 107
Issue: 3
Print publication date: 01/03/2022
Online publication date: 09/12/2021
Acceptance date: 24/11/2021
ISSN (print): 0003-9888
ISSN (electronic): 1468-2044
Publisher: BMJ Group
URL: https://doi.org/10.1136/archdischild-2021-322979
DOI: 10.1136/archdischild-2021-322979
PubMed id: 34887248
Altmetrics provided by Altmetric
