Assessing child satisfaction and expectations for developing a child-friendly environment at the pediatric department in a general hospital in Qatar.

Background: "Patient-centered" care positions the patient at the core and emphasizes fulfilling their unique needs, preferences, and values. This approach is particularly significant in the context of children. Although widely recognized as necessary, this approach is not universally implemented. The children find themselves in hospital wards where they are required to follow protocols and systems designed primarily for adults. In the appropriate atmosphere, children often express themselves more effectively through words, body language, and play, leading to a richer understanding of their needs. There is growing recognition of the importance of addressing children's concerns regarding hospital environments. Aim: This study investigates children's satisfaction with the physical aspect of the hospital environment. Insights from this exploration could provide valuable input for creating hospital environments centered around children's needs and preferences. Methods: This mixed-methods study involves children aged 6-14 years with parental consent from a premiere healthcare provider in the state of Qatar. The survey used nine items to gauge satisfaction with the existing hospital environment as a "child-friendly hospital" and another nine items to explore their expectations for such environments. The Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis tests as well as thematic analyses were employed to assess the statistical significance of differences in satisfaction levels and children's expectations of the hospital's physical environment. Results: A total of 398 children participated in the study. Of them, 40.3% were aged 6-8 years; 60.3% had experienced two to five hospital visits; 55.8% of children participated during their outpatient service visit; and 31.7% were Asian. Children's satisfaction levels with various aspects of the hospital environment-including its physical appearance, signage, lounge, consultant rooms, corridors, bedrooms, TV content, toys, and staff uniforms-were in the range of 42.9%-59%. The children expressed a desire for a hospital environment that is spacious, colorful, attractive, and filled with cartoon characters and toys in the children's hospital from the front lounge to the inpatient units. Conclusion: The findings underline the importance of considering the perspectives of children in evidence-based healthcare design. The study reveals that children's satisfaction with the hospital environment is generally average or below average. Ultimately, a "child-friendly hospital environment" integrates children's rights into healthcare to significantly improve outcomes.

Stigma towards health care providers taking care of COVID-19 patients: A multi-country study.

Background: Health care providers (HCPs) have always been a common target of stigmatization during widespread infections and COVID-19 is not an exception. Aim: This study aims to investigate the prevalence of stigmatization during the COVID-19 pandemic among HCPs in seven different countries using the Stigma COVID-19 Healthcare Providers tool (S19-HCPs). Design: Cross-sectional. Methods: The S19-HCPs is a self-administered online survey (16-item) developed and validated by the research team. The participants were invited to complete an online survey. Data collection started from June-July 2020 using a convenience sample of HCPs from Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Philippines, and Kuwait. Results: A total number of 1726 participants were included in the final analysis. The majority of the study participants were Jordanians (22%), followed by Kuwaitis (19%), Filipinos (18%) and the lowest participants were Indonesians (6%). Other nationalities were Iraqis, Saudis, and Egyptians with 15%, 11% and 9% respectively. Among the respondents, 57% have worked either in a COVID-19 designated facility or in a quarantine center and 78% claimed that they had received training for COVID-19. Statistical significance between COVID-19 stigma and demographic variables were found in all aspect of the S19-HCPs. Conclusion: The findings of this study demonstrated high levels of stigmatization against HCPs in all the included seven countries. On the other hand, they are still perceived positively by their communities and in their utmost, highly motivated to care for COVID-19 patients. Educational and awareness programs could have a crucial role in the solution of stigmatization problems over the world.

Comparing the Impact of COVID-19 on Nurses' Turnover Intentions before and during the Pandemic in Qatar.

BACKGROUND: Although several studies examining nurses' turnover intentions have been conducted, few studies have been conducted to explore how COVID-19 contributes to nurses' turnover intentions. This study aims to compare nurses' turnover (TO) intentions before and during COVID-19. METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted using the Turnover Intention Scale (TIS-6) and a convenience sample of participants from the largest healthcare provider in Qatar between August and September 2020. RESULTS: A total of 512 nurses were included in the final analysis. The majority were between 31 and 40 years of age (61.5%), 67.6% were females, 76.4% were married, 79.7% had a BSN, 43% had less than 5 years of experience, and 60.4% had worked in COVID-19 designated facilities. The turnover intentions were higher compared with before COVID-19 (p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Nurses in Qatar have higher TO intentions during COVID-19. The participants' characteristics and stress levels are playing a major role in nurses' decision to leave during COVID-19. Understanding the factors that contribute to turnover intentions is crucial for workforce planning, especially during pandemics.