Illness Impact

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Impact of child illness on child and family Introduction Each family has a child with illness affected by experience. The effects on the family and their responses are so critical that directly and indirectly influence the other members’ reactions and the child’s own coping. Also being an ill child, child also differ its response from that of adults.

Impact on family A major goal in working with the family of the child with illness is to support the family’s coping and promoting optimum functioning throughout the child’s life. The impact of the child’s illness on the family are often experienced as crisis. It is important for a pediatric nurse to work in assessing, diagnosing and giving care to child and as well as to the family.

Impact on parents Besides graving for the loss of a perfect child, parents may or may not receive a positive feed back from transactions with their child. Many parents feel satisfaction and fulfillment in parenting role. For example: parents may become preoccupied with their ability to carry out certain procedure, overlooking the child’s personal comfort and satisfaction or feeling to offer praise for anything less than perfect cooperation or performances. They may pensive a frustrating activity until they achieve success, long after the child has become irritable and uncooperative. For these parents several strategies may help like Education regarding what actually happened to child what is the treatment of choice, and hoe is the prognosis?

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Mother and Father Difference Even though mother and father both are regarded as parents, the effect is differing from each other. Majority of the mother will have severe crisis during child illness and father have a steady and gradual response. Some study shows that mothers of sick children have a greater risk of getting psychosis than fathers. During this time mothers may forget the personal care about health and other factors. Fathers worry about the future holds for the child, as well as about their ability to manage the increasing financial burden.

Single parent family These groups are to be special concern. The absence of the one parent may be, • Divorce • Death • Haven’t married A single parent of child with illness will feel enormous burden of financial and emotional needs. Nurse can help by giving psychological support, and also giving options to select the financial support source.

Impact on siblings Limited studies have done on the impact on the siblings. Majority of available resources have shone that brothers and sisters of sick children have a greater chance of maladjustments. Some studies say that siblings have both positive and negative feeling on the hospitalized child. For example a sick child who is admitted may get greater attention from the parents at the same time frequency of hospitalization may disturb the family process and routine. These things will make child to become maladjusted with the condition and potentially child will show the behavioral abnormalities in family and also in school environment

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Extended Family Members and society In addition to the parents and siblings significant family members and/or friends may experience the effects. Even though extended family members will help parents in child rearing they may also become the source of stress. Studies shows that most grand parents have a double grief, in the form of their grand children and their own children. The family members need guidelines in preparing for inevitable events of stress.

Impact on child The child’s reaction to an illness is greatly depended on the developmental stage. The understanding about age also on duration of the disease and hospitalization Infants During infancy the child is engaged in the task of developing trust through intimate, satisfying, and consistent relationships with his parents. When illness strikes these relationships is potentially affects and child will get negative socialization in the form of developing mistrust. Toddler The toddler is the stage of autonomy the need for mastery of locomotion and language skills paramount. When illness can hinder the mobility and derivates the mastery. In addition over protective parents can magnifies the problem by setting limitation to child exploration for the fear of injury. Hospitalization will separate child from parents and its enjoyment Preschooler The preschooler is at stage of imitativeness. Numerous tasks are achieved during this stage that can be hampered by illness. These will limit the child learning about environment, especially in terms of social development. An hospitalized child may delays in social development.

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School age During this stage normally child wants to be enjoying with the peers rather than the family members. Peers have greater influence in child development. Hospitalization will restrict him to be with peers this will make a school child to feel inadequacy. At the same time bad grading at the school will make child isolated from the peers. Adolescents The impact of illness may be most difficult during adolescent age group. The major task of this age is development of self concept hospitalization will alter his towards himself. This will lead to greater emotional disability in the form of, Inferiority Depression Withdrawn Irritable Moody Emotional

Conclusion A major goal in working with the family of the child with illness is to support the family’s coping and promoting optimum functioning throughout the child’s life. The impact of the child’s illness on the family are often experienced as crisis. It is important for a pediatric nurse to work in assessing, diagnosing and giving care to child and as well as to the family.

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PLAY The universal media of play children learn what no one can teach them. They learn about their world and how to deal with this environment of objects, time, space, structure, and people. They learn about themselves operating within the environment. Play is the work of child in the play continually practices the complicated stressful process of living, communicating, and achieving satisfactory relationships eith other people.

Classifications of Play Play can be classified in to 5 major types 1. Onlooker play 2. Solitary play 3. Parallel play 4. Associative play 5. Cooperative play Onlooker play [New born] During this child will look at others enjoys itself sometimes child tries out to enter in to play Solitary play [infancy] In this period child play alone with toys different from those used by other children. They enjoys presence of children but doesn’t effort to involve in them in play.

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Parallel play [Toddler] In parallel play children will play together independently but with other children. They play with toys like others are uses. Each plays besides but not together.

Associative play In associative play children will play together and engaged in similar or even identical activities, but there is no organization division of labor, leaderships, and assignment or mutual goals Cooperative play In this organized and children play in a group with other children. They discuss and plan the activities for the purpose of accomplishment or an end to make something, to attain a competitive goal, to dramatize situations of adult or group life or to play formally. Functions of play Sensory motor development Intellectual development Socialization Creativity Self awareness Therapeutic value

PLAY THERAPY

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Definition: “It is defined as a psychological technique used by trained and qualified therapist as an interpretive method with emotional disturbed child” Play provides one of the best opportunities for encouraging emotional expression, including the self release of anger and hostility.

Functions of play in hospital  Provides diversion and brings about relaxation 

Helps the child to feel more secure

 Provides means of relaxation from stress  Encourage interaction  Provide creative outlets

Types of activities in hospital Divisional activities Almost of any type of play will divert the child from stress and also used as recreations, but activities should be selected according to the age, level of activities and interest of the child. Children will be left to play with raw materials and no directions should be given just all need to do is a observation Expressive activities Play itself aids in expressive form for the child. In these type activities children will be given materials to play through they will play and will express their anger, pain or any feelings. Ex: painting

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Dramatic play Dramatic play is a well recognized technique for emotional release, allowing children to freighting or puzzling hospital environment. Dramatic play enables children to learn about procedures and events that will be done in hospital

Conclusion The universal media of play children learn what no one can teach them. They learn about their world and how to deal with this environment of objects, time, space, structure, and people. They learn about themselves operating within the environment. Play is the work of child in the play continually practices the complicated stressful process of living, communicating, and achieving satisfactory relationships with other people.