TY - JOUR
T1 - Medical information concerning an infant's congenital anomaly
T2 - successful communication to support parental adjustment and transition Part of the content of this manuscript has been presented at a National Conference in 2013
AU - Fonseca, Ana
AU - Nazaré, Bárbara
AU - Canavarro, Maria Cristina
N1 - Funding Information:
This study is part of the “Reproductive decisions and transition to parenthood after a pre- or postnatal diagnosis of congenital anomaly” research project, integrated in the Relationships, Development & Health Research Group of the R&D Unit Cognitive-Behavioral Center for Research and Intervention of the University of Coimbra (PEst-OE/PSI/UI0730/2014). Ana Fonseca and Bárbara Nazaré were supported by PhD Scholarships from the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (SFRH/BD/47053/2008, SFRH/BD/43204/2008, respectively). The authors wish to thank the services that enabled the sample collection: Pediatric Cardiology Service of the Pediatric Hospital – Centro Hospitalar de Coimbra (parents of babies with congenital heart disease) and the Obstetrics and Neonatology Departments – Hospitais da Universidade de Coimbra (the remaining participants from the clinical and comparison groups).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
PY - 2016
Y1 - 2016
N2 - Background When a diagnosis of congenital anomaly (CA) is made, parents are confronted with new and complex medical information, which may impact their parental adjustment. However, few studies have explored the role of information concerning the CA in parental adjustment, during the transition to parenthood. Objective/hypothesis This study aimed to characterize both parents' perceptions of information concerning the CA and to investigate their role in maternal and paternal adjustment, one month after the disclosure and six months post-birth. Methods Thirty six couples whose infants were prenatally- or postnatally diagnosed with a CA participated in this prospective longitudinal study. During both assessment times (Time 1: one-month after the disclosure; Time 2: six-month post-birth), they answered the Brief Symptom Inventory-18, the EUROHIS-QOL-8, and other specific questions to assess parents' information perceptions. Results Mothers were more satisfied than fathers (p <.01) with the amount of information that was received at the disclosure, although mothers and fathers reported similar levels of comprehension of information. Six-month post-birth, both parents were similarly satisfied with the information that was received, although mothers sought significantly more (p <.01) additional information. Both maternal and paternal adjustment were significantly associated with maternal perceptions of information concerning CA. Conclusion Health professionals should recognize the important role of information concerning CA in parental adjustment and tailor their communication practices in order to promote parents' satisfaction and comprehension of the medical information. Despite the prominent influence of maternal perceptions on parental adjustment, both parents should be included in the communication process.
AB - Background When a diagnosis of congenital anomaly (CA) is made, parents are confronted with new and complex medical information, which may impact their parental adjustment. However, few studies have explored the role of information concerning the CA in parental adjustment, during the transition to parenthood. Objective/hypothesis This study aimed to characterize both parents' perceptions of information concerning the CA and to investigate their role in maternal and paternal adjustment, one month after the disclosure and six months post-birth. Methods Thirty six couples whose infants were prenatally- or postnatally diagnosed with a CA participated in this prospective longitudinal study. During both assessment times (Time 1: one-month after the disclosure; Time 2: six-month post-birth), they answered the Brief Symptom Inventory-18, the EUROHIS-QOL-8, and other specific questions to assess parents' information perceptions. Results Mothers were more satisfied than fathers (p <.01) with the amount of information that was received at the disclosure, although mothers and fathers reported similar levels of comprehension of information. Six-month post-birth, both parents were similarly satisfied with the information that was received, although mothers sought significantly more (p <.01) additional information. Both maternal and paternal adjustment were significantly associated with maternal perceptions of information concerning CA. Conclusion Health professionals should recognize the important role of information concerning CA in parental adjustment and tailor their communication practices in order to promote parents' satisfaction and comprehension of the medical information. Despite the prominent influence of maternal perceptions on parental adjustment, both parents should be included in the communication process.
KW - Comprehension of information
KW - Diagnosis of congenital anomaly
KW - Parental adjustment
KW - Parents' information perceptions
KW - Satisfaction with information
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84945900053&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.dhjo.2015.08.005
DO - 10.1016/j.dhjo.2015.08.005
M3 - Article
C2 - 26433743
AN - SCOPUS:84945900053
SN - 1936-6574
VL - 9
SP - 150
EP - 156
JO - Disability and Health Journal
JF - Disability and Health Journal
IS - 1
ER -