A Study on the Psychological Status of Hospitalized Children and Their Perceptions of Hospital and Sickness Through Drawings

Year 2019, Volume: 13 Issue: 4, 283 - 291, 30.07.2019

İrem Erdem Atak , Utku Beyazıt , Gönül Taşçıoğlu Aynur Bütün Ayhan

https://doi.org/10.12956/tchd.518412

Cited By: 1

Abstract

Objective: Sickness and
hospitalization may have negative influences on the development and
psychological status of children. It is important to understand children’s perceptions
of sickness and hospital in order to reduce and eliminate the negative effects
of hospitalization experiences on the psychological well-being of the children.
From this perspective, the aim of this study was to examine the hospitalized
children’s psychological status and their perceptions of hospital and sickness.

Material and Methods: The study was based
on a both descriptive and content analysis approach. The study group consisted
of 31 children between the ages of 5 and 16 years who were recruited from a
public hospital in North Cyprus. The children’s experiences were examined
through their family and hospital drawings and draw-and-tell interviews.

Results: Anxiety, depression, and the
representation of the hospital as unsafe, need for a well-structured
environment, problems with social relations, difficulties with holding onto
life and lack of quality in the drawings were found to be the common findings
in the drawings. When the drawings of each child were evaluated individually,
it was found that regression increases in the hospital drawings.

Conclusion: The findings of this
study may be helpful in understanding the hospitalization experiences from the
children’s perspective and might have clinical implications for practice in
terms of supporting children in the hospitalization process.

Keywords

Psychological status, hospitalized children, perceptions of hospital

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