Effects of Stress-Point Intervention With Families of Repeatedly Hospitalized Children

Parents of repeatedly hospitalized children with chronic conditions are considered veterans of the health care system. Yet each hospitalization presents unique problems, can be more stressful, and has potential for lasting problems. A family-focused, supportive intervention, Stress-Point Intervention by Nurses (SPIN), was designed to reduce family problems. It was hypothesized that parents who participated in SPIN compared with those with usual care would have more satisfaction with family functioning and better parent coping after their children’s hospitalizations. A three-site clinical trial with random assignment of 23 ambulatory clinic nurses and their respective child-patients and families to experimental SPIN or usual care control groups was employed with 115 children aged 1 through 15. The Feetham Family Functioning Survey and Coping Health Inventory for Parents were completed before hospitalization and 3 months after discharge. SPIN parents were more satisfied with family functioning and had better parental coping after hospitalization than parents who received usual care.