BACKGROUND: Communication with parents about end-of-life care and decisions is a difficult and sensitive process. The objective of the present study was to ascertain clinicians' views on the acceptability and usefulness of a handbook and web-based…
BACKGROUND: Written resources in adult intensive care have been shown to benefit families facing end of life (EoL) decisions. There are few resources for parents making EoL decisions for their child and no existing resources addressing ethical…
OBJECTIVE: To review the literature on moral distress experienced by nursing and medical professionals within neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) and paediatric intensive care units (PICUs). DESIGN: Pubmed, EBSCO (Academic Search Complete, CINAHL…
OBJECTIVE: End-of-life decision-making is difficult for everyone involved, as many studies have shown. Within this complexity, there has been little information on how parents see the role of doctors in end-of-life decision-making for children. This…
BACKGROUND: Current conceptualisations of moral distress largely portray a negative phenomenon that leads to burnout, reduced job satisfaction and poor patient care. OBJECTIVE: To explore clinical experiences, perspectives and perceptions of moral…
When healthcare professionals feel constrained from acting in a patient's best interests, moral distress ensues. The resulting negative sequelae of burnout, poor retention rates, and ultimately poor patient care are well recognized across healthcare…
AIM: To examine paediatric deaths following withdrawal or withholding of medical treatment (WWMT) from a hospital-wide perspective and identify changes over a 10 year period. METHODS: A retrospective review of medical records was conducted for all…
Advances in perinatal care bring with them ethical challenges and difficult questions. When should we provide life-sustaining interventions, and who should decide? Particularly at the edges of viability, some clinicians may feel required to provide a…
INTRODUCTION: Simulations, which represent reality, are effective in pediatric healthcare communication skills education and training. Parents are increasingly engaged in simulation development, particularly for authentic character development, to…
Children with severe neurological impairment (such as cerebral palsy or congenital anomalies) are living longer, although medically complex, lives. Feeding intolerance is an increasing problem that is emerging as a new end-of-life issue. Long-term…
The unexpected birth of a critically ill baby raises many ethical questions for neonatologists. Some of these are obviously ethical questions, about whether to attempt resuscitation, and, if the baby is resuscitated and survives, whether to continue…
Background: When making end-of-life decisions for a child in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), standard practice is to involve parents in shared decision-making so that the values of parents are considered and decisions are made in the…
OBJECTIVE: To describe how paediatricians undertake the process of end-of-life decision-making for a child with a life-limiting condition who is unable to participate in decision-making for themselves. DESIGN: A qualitative phenomenological study…
OBJECTIVES: To explore the perceptions of parents caring for a child with a life-limiting condition on approaches to communication used by clinicians engaging in routine serious illness communication. METHODS: An exploratory qualitative design was…
Background/objectives: Shared decision-making is widely accepted as the best approach for end-of-life decision-making for children with life-limiting conditions. Both paediatricians and parents find benefit in preparing for such decisions. However,…
