Parents' perceptions of patient safety in paediatric hospital care—A mixed‐methods systematic review

Abstract

AbstractAim(s)To identify and summarize evidence on paediatric patient safety in a hospital setting from parents' point of view.DesignA mixed‐methods systematic review.Prospero IDID number CRD42023453626.Data SourcesPubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect, the Cochrane Library and the Wiley database were searched in July 2023.Review MethodsTwo researchers independently applied eligibility criteria, selected studies and conducted a quality appraisal. Data‐based convergent synthesis and thematic content analysis were employed.ResultsTwelve studies were included: eight qualitative research studies, two cross‐sectional studies, one non‐randomized experimental study and one mixed‐methods study. The results were grouped into two themes—parental perceptions of inclusion in paediatric patient safety and parental perceptions of exclusion from paediatric patient safety—and comprised seven main subthemes: comfort in communication, parental engagement, communication difficulties, withdrawal from activity, uncertainty about available information and threats to patient safety.ConclusionsParents are willing to be engaged in care but require support from healthcare professionals, as they are often anxious about the condition of their children and actions they believe might be helpful. They need to be treated as valuable partners and be engaged in communication and decision processes.ImpactThe development and implementation of interventions involving parents in ensuring the safety of hospitalized paediatric patients should be of the utmost priority to healthcare organizations, as the common theme throughout the included studies was the need for improved communication with and recognition of parents as allies.Reporting MethodThe Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analysis (PRISMA) checklist was followed.Patient or Public ContributionNo Patient or Public Contribution.