A review of interventions supporting parent's psychological well-being after a child's intensive care unit discharge

Abstract

Background: Having a child admitted to a paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) is a highly stressful experience, and post-traumatic stress among parents is well documented. How best to support these parents is currently unclear.

Aim: To review research on interventions to support the psychological well-being of parents after their child's discharge from paediatric intensive care.

Methods: Searches were conducted using Medline, PsycINFO, PubMed, CINAHL and The Cochrane library in January 2017. Study selection was carried out using pre-specified criteria. Following appraisal of methodological quality and risk of bias, data were extracted and analysed using a narrative synthesis.

Results: Six quantitative studies met the inclusion criteria. Intervention types included follow-up appointments, telephone calls, educational information and post-admission interviews. Insufficient evidence was found to fully support any intervention in isolation, but findings support a clear trend that some form of follow up is beneficial.

Conclusions: Testing costly interventions is challenging and takes time. In the meantime, a low-cost intervention (such as an information leaflet) to raise awareness of potential problems in staff and to provide a support resource for parents is recommended.

Relevance to clinical practice: Parents and carers of children admitted to PICU can develop post-traumatic stress symptoms after their child's discharge from PICU. This article addresses how best to support these parents to improve their psychological well-being.

Keywords: Follow-up; Paediatric critical care (MeSH); Parents; Post-traumatic stress.