Supporting 'expert' parents--professional support and families caring for a child with complex health care needs in the community.
In the United Kingdom a new group of children with intensive and complex health care needs are now being cared for at home as a result of medical advances and government policies emphasising the community as the arena for care. This has led their parents to become involved in providing care of a highly technical and intensive nature that would previously have been considered to be the domain of professionals. In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with parents and professionals to discover parents' and professionals' experiences of receiving and providing support in a context where parents rather than professionals are the expert caregivers. This paper describes the elements of professional 'support' that were particularly valued by parents and concludes with a discussion of the implications for professional education and roles.
Kirk
Susan
S
National Primary Care Research and Development Centre, University of Manchester, The Williamson Building, Oxford Road, UK. sue.kirk@man.ac.uk
Glendinning
Caroline
C
D000293:Adolescent; D017028:Caregivers; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006282:Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D010290:Parents; D012944:Social Support; D006113:United Kingdom