Paper
Wednesday, 19 July 2006
This presentation is part of : Child and Adolescent Health Initiatives
Parents' Self-Reported Predominant Stress Themes Associated with their Adolescents' Major Spinal Surgery
Lynda L. LaMontagne, RN, DNSc, Michele H. Salisbury, RNC, PhD, and Joseph T. Hepworth, PhD. School of Nursing, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
Learning Objective #1: Describe parents' predominant preoperative and postoperative stressors.
Learning Objective #2: Describe the change in parental stressors between the preoperative and postoperative period.
Purpose:  Little is known about the stressors parents experience during their adolescents' major surgical experience such as spinal surgery.  This study examined parents’ self-reported stressors both preoperatively and postoperatively during their adolescents' hospitalization.  The questions posed were what are the parents' stressors and do they change from the preoperative period through postoperative recovery?

Method:  A convenience sample of 92 parents whose adolescent (mean age 13.4, 83% Caucasian, and 74% female) was scheduled for surgery for correction of idiopathic scoliosis was recruited.  Parents were asked to report their predominant stressor the day before surgery and on the fourth postoperative day. 

Findings:  Thematic analysis of parents’ stressors revealed six predominant preoperative and five predominant postoperative themes.  Predominant preoperative themes expressed by at least 20% of the parents included disruption of parents' protective role (28%), uncertainty about surgical recovery (27%), and concerns about poor long term outcomes (20%).  Predominant postoperative themes expressed by at least 20% of the parents included disruption of parents' protective role (32%) and concerns about their adolescents' level of pain (32%). 

Discussion:  The findings suggest that disruption of parents' normal protective role in helping their adolescent cope with distress is a major stressor for parents both preoperatively and postoperatively.  Although uncertainty about surgical recovery was a predominant stressor preoperatively, concerns about postoperative pain and a successful recovery emerged as dominant postoperative themes. Understanding the stressors parents experience during their adolescents' surgical experience will help nurses to be more supportive and attentive to their needs for coping with these stressors. 

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