Developing responsiveness to the health needs of Hispanic children and families.
Admission to a tertiary care pediatric hospital is a stressful experience for the Hispanic child and family. The stress partially stems from the institutional barriers that conflict with the psycho-social needs of Hispanic families. This article identifies six psycho-social needs of Hispanics and examines related risks for coping disturbances encountered during the hospitalization process. These risks can be reduced by increasing health providers' understanding of the psycho-social needs of Hispanics and by specifying culturally appropriate interventions. The development of cross-cultural committees, protocols and hospital based Hispanic self-help networks represent distinct modalities for improving responsiveness to the health needs of Hispanic families in a hospital setting.
D002648:Child; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand / Q000639:trends*; D006302:Health Services Research / Q000639:trends*; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008800:Mexico / Q000208:ethnology; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D011368:Professional-Family Relations; D012944:Social Support