OC06 - Involving parents in their child's care - where next?

Theme: Complex health care and chronic disease management. Introduction: Health policy advocates that professionals involve parents in care and care decisions, yet models advocating involvement are not embedded into practice. Aim: Identify the shared antecedents and key attributes associated with embedding family-centred care (FCC) and partnership-in-care (PiC) into practice. Methods: A concept synthesis was undertaken by searching three databases (Scopus, CINAHL, BNI 1999-2014); shared antecedents and attributes were extrapolated from the 30 studies that met defined inclusion criteria. Results: Unclear roles and boundaries, entrenched professional practices and lack of guidelines hinder FCC/PiC implementation. An alternative framework was developed based on the actions and skills required to support parents’ involvement in care and care decisions. Discussion: Greater focus on the skills required to facilitate involvement may negate the challenges of embedding FCC/PiC. Conclusion: The framework for involvement can help guide nurses’ actions towards building effective relationships and involving parents in care decisions.