Outcomes of a nursing intervention for siblings of chronically ill children: a pilot study

Abstract

Purpose: To evaluate the outcomes of a structured, educational, and support group intervention (ISEE, Intervention for Siblings: Experience Enhancement) for siblings of children with chronic illness (cancer, cystic fibrosis, diabetes, and spina bifida), including a session with parents about sibling needs; and to describe sibling and parent perceptions of sibling experiences at home.

Design: One-group, pretest-posttest pilot study.

Participants: A convenience sample of 22 siblings and parents.

Setting: A Midwestern university medical center.

Main outcome measures: Knowledge of Illness Test, parent ratings on a global, single item, 10-point scale.

Results: Sibling test scores increased significantly after intervention, compared to baseline. Parents' average evaluation rating was 9 on a 10-point scale. Parents supported their positive ratings with verbatim descriptions. Sibling and parent perceptions of sibling experiences were congruent, suggesting the sources of potential adjustment problems in siblings, and were consistent with the literature.

Conclusions: A randomized, clinical trial with a larger sample size is needed to evaluate the intervention further.