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Review
. 2023 Nov;10(11):7118-7129.
doi: 10.1002/nop2.1972. Epub 2023 Aug 26.

Children patients with COVID-19: How can parental and peer support lessen the psychological burden of isolation

Nojoud Alrashidi  1 , Faransa A Ahmed  2   3 , Huwida H Abdelmonem  4 , Abeer A Almowafy  5 , Ola A Abed El-Fatah  6 , Omaim M Elalem  7 , Sahar G Behilak  8 , Shadia A Syan  9 , Mervat A Sayed  10 , Hanan A Mohammed  4 , Mona F Hussien  11 , Mervat E Ibrahim  12 , Asmaa M AlAbd  13 , Rasha A Mohamed  14 , Salwa A Marzouk  1 , Wafaa Y Abdel Wahed  15 , Zeze T Atwa  16 , Sayeda M Mohamed  17
Affiliations
Review

Children patients with COVID-19: How can parental and peer support lessen the psychological burden of isolation

Nojoud Alrashidi et al. Nurs Open. 2023 Nov.

Abstract

Aim: To assess the effect of parental and peer support on children's self-esteem during the isolation period in COVID-19-infected children is the main objective of this study.

Design: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study. One hundred ninety children with a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 were included.

Methods: A survey questionnaire to assess family and children's demographic characteristics was used for this study. A 13-item scale to assess parental support during the isolation period and a 10-item scale to assess peers' support during the isolation period were evaluated. Along with it, a 10-item scale to assess self-esteem during the isolation period was also measured.

Results: Home isolation was associated with higher parental and peer support scores than hospital isolation. The mean age of study participants was 13.23 ± 4.05 years; 52.6% were isolated at home versus 47.4% in hospital isolation. Phone calling and WhatsApp/messenger chat were methods of communication for 44.2% and 33.2% of patients, respectively. 6.3% of them had no method of communication. Child self-esteem was significantly affected by both parental and peer support during isolation. The increase in pronounced negative psychological effects such as disorientation, anger, low self-esteem and post-traumatic distress may be caused by a lack of parental care.

No patient or public contribution to this study: Patients or the general public were not involved in the design, analysis or interpretation of the data in this study. The study's aim and objectives were developed based on children's self-esteem, which was limited by questionnaire data information, so the researchers completed demographic and disease-related questionnaires by interviewing them.

Keywords: COVID-19; children; isolation; parental support; peer support; self-esteem.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Mean self‐esteem by parenteral and peer support of studied children (N = 190).
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Correlation between self‐esteem, parenteral and social support of studied children during isolation from COVID‐19 (N = 190).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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