Perception of primary care pediatric nurses about the Healthy Childhood Program

Abstract

Objective: To know the perception of pediatric nurses of primary care regarding the nursing leadership of the Childhood with Health Program, as well as to identify proposals for its improvement.

Methodology: Qualitative study through semi-structured interviews with five primary care pediatric nurses in the health region of Girona (Spain). A thematic analysis of the content of the interviews was carried out.

Results: The results of the study provided three themes related to nurses’ perception of the program: (1) autonomous role of nurses (increasing the autonomous role of nurses provides benefits for children, their families and other health professionals); (2) difficulties and aspects of improvement (Idiomatic cases and cultural barriers are identified along with the management of situations of non-normality as the main difficulties, and the increase in group activities, nursing training in auscultation and abdominal examination, and greater psychological care as aspects of improvement); and (3) new needs of the child population and their environment (especially related to complexity during adolescence and cultural diversity).

Conclusions: Pediatric nurses consider it necessary to enhance the autonomous role of nurses in the Healthy Childhood Program. The main difficulties in the development of the program are the language barrier with some families and the lack of training of nurses in cultural diversity, auscultation and abdominal exploration. The program should also include more group visits, improve care channels for psychological care for children and adolescents, and be adapted to the needs of a culturally more diverse population with a more complex adolescent population.