Foreldres opplevelse av tillit og tap når barnet er til anestesi : Hvordan opplever foreldre det å være med på barnets første generelle anestesi ved elektiv kirurgi?

Abstract

Background There is a widespread practice that one parent is present during the induction of his or her child’s anesthesia. There are quantitative studies on how the parent’s presence impacts the induction, the impact on the child, and satisfaction with the parents. Literature within psychology states that there are bonds between parent and child. However, I found little on what the parents’ experiences are. Aim The intention of this study is to gain a better understanding of the parent’s experiences when they are following their child to, and attending, the induction of the general anesthesia. The research question What is the parent’s experience from being present at their child’s first general anesthesia to a planned surgery? Method A qualitative method was chosen. The study is based on semi-structured in-depth interviews with 3 parents whose children have been to general anesthesia as part of a planned surgery. The analysis is based on hermeneutic principals and the hermeneutic circle. Result Parents experience trusting the health care staff with parenthood and their child’s life on one hand and fearing injury or death of their child on the other. The degree of these feelings varies, e.g. the fear being either a feeling or a physical experience from when the child loses consciousness. The parents’ experience that their child is met and seen by the staff helps the parents trust the staff, however, the parents experience doubting their capability as parents. Conclusion The parentsalternate between experiencing trust, fear of loss or injury of their child, and doubting themselves. Keywords Parent’s experience, children to general anesthesia, qualitative, hermeneutic