title: Oncology nurses' perceptions of their supportive care for parents with advanced cancer: challenges and educational needs.
abstract: Despite the emotional impact for children with a parent with advanced cancer, most families receive limited information and support to assist them. A project is underway to determine the acceptability and effectiveness of a supportive and educational intervention for parents with advanced cancer to be delivered by specially trained oncology nurses. To assess the perceptions of oncology nurses about this role, explore potential challenges, and understand their educational needs, oncology nurses were recruited from three metropolitan hospitals to participate in focus groups. This data was supplemented with data from individual interviews conducted with rurally based nurses unable to participate in focus groups held in a metropolitan location. Four focus groups were held, with 24 participants. Individual telephone interviews were conducted with five nurses. Nurses identified the emotional burden of the supportive care role as a key challenge, along with health care systems which were not attuned to the needs of families. Attention to self-care and professional confidence, and access to role-models emerged as key elements required in education, along with information about the impact of parental cancer on children and their developmental stages, and ways to promote more open parental communicate with children.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Queensland, Australia. jane.turner@uq.edu.au
authors.forename: Jane
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Turner
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Clavarino
authors.forename: Patsy
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Yates
authors.forename: Maryanne
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hargraves
authors.forename: Veronica
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Connors
authors.forename: Sue
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hausmann
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002648:Child; D016241:Child of Impaired Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D002983:Clinical Competence; D003142:Communication; D017281:Cost of Illness; D004493:Education; D004644:Emotions; D017144:Focus Groups; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006801:Humans; D007318:Inservice Training; D009369:Neoplasms; D024802:Nurse's Role / Q000523:psychology*; D009859:Oncology Nursing / Q000193:education*; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D011368:Professional-Family Relations; D011379:Prognosis; D012648:Self Care / Q000523:psychology; D012944:Social Support