Families of chronic ill children: social representations of illness

Abstract

This article presents a review of literature of family participation in the assistance of hospitalized children, and presents, also, the partial results of a study that investigated families's social representations of their children's chronic illness and hospitalization. In the pediatric unit, parents were invited to participate in activities especially planned for them, whose aims were to convey and share information. To do so, the staff used group technique. The sample consisted of 38 families and the methodology of data collection was a combination of techniques such as systematic observation and interview. The results showed that family's main concern was the diagnosis, that the illness representation has the symptom as the main point, and that hospitalization is viewed firstly as a negative experience.