I'm Here, Too: Being an Adolescent Sibling of a Pediatric Cancer Patient in Turkey.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to determine experiences and needs of Turkish adolescent siblings of children with cancer (SCC) and to identify if there is a country/culture-specific risk factor for these siblings. DESIGN AND METHOD: In this qualitative study hermeneutic phenomenological approach was used. Eighteen eligible siblings were selected purposively from two hospitals in Ankara, Turkey. Interviews were conducted with a semi-structured form. Content and thematic analyses were used to analyze the data. RESULTS: The data revealed three levels of themes. The main theme was based on "I am here, too". From the first moment of diagnosis, siblings need to be visible and noticed by others. They seek ways to make sense of the disease as they experience dramatic changes in all aspects of their lives (high level themes - first encounter with the disease and changes in life). They expect their parents and relatives to support them (expectations) when they turn to various methods to cope with the changes (coping styles). CONCLUSIONS: The lack of protective psychosocial care is a basic risk factor for adolescent SCC in Turkey. Despite its various limitations, the strongest aspect of this study is that it is the first publication that determines the experiences of Turkish SCC in their own words. In addition to supporting recent findings about siblings' experiences, obtaining some country-specific findings is a strength of the present study. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Providing psychosocial risk assessment of the siblings' immediately after diagnosis is necessary. It can be helpful to inform parents about the risks.

The Effect of Perceived Social Support and Spiritual Care Needs in Predicting Hope in Oncology Patients.

BACKGROUND: Hope has an influential role in oncology patients and is related to perceived social support and spirituality. However, studies on the extent to which the concepts of perceived social support and spiritual care needs affect hope are still limited. OBJECTIVE: To examine the effect of perceived social support and spiritual care needs in predicting hope in adult oncology patients. METHODS: Study questionnaires, a demographic form, the Herth Hope Scale, the Multidimensional Perceived Social Support Scale, and the Spiritual Care Needs Scale were administered to participants. Correlation and regression analyses were conducted. RESULTS: A total of 134 oncology patients completed the study questionnaires. Significant correlations were found between hope and perceived social support and between hope and spiritual care needs (P < .05). Perceived support explained 11.7% of the variance in hope scores. A 1-unit increase in the support score was associated with a 0.344-unit increase in the hope score. Spiritual care needs did not significantly predict hope. CONCLUSION: In line with the results, interventions that promote social support may increase hope in oncology patients. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Nurses could incorporate interventions into their care to improve social support as one way to enhance hope levels among oncology patients. Further studies are required to understand more about the impact of spiritual care needs on hope.

A Qualitative Analysis on the Experiences of Mothers of Children in Burn Intensive Care Unit: "She burned on the outside, me inside..."

Mothers closely follow the complex process due to the burning of their children. Caring for and supporting the child can pose various challenges for mothers. With the phenomenological method, this study was conducted to investigate mothers' experiences staying with their children in the pediatric burn intensive care unit. Twelve mothers participated in the study. The semistructured face-to-face interviews obtained data. After each interview, the research team transcribed the interviews verbatim. Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis was used to analyze the data. The experiences of the mothers were classified in four contexts as a result of the interpretative phenomenological analysis; "first reactions to burn trauma" related to the awareness that the child has been burned, "being a mother in the burn intensive care unit" related to caring for the child as a companion in the burn intensive care unit, "coping" related to how they cope with the problems throughout the whole process, and "requirements" regarding the subjects it needs in the process. It was determined that mothers went through a physically and emotionally challenging process from the beginning of the burn trauma and throughout the intensive care unit. During this challenging process, it was observed that mothers could not use effective coping methods and did not receive the necessary professional support. In line with these results, it is recommended that psychological support programs be applied to the mothers and that care focused on the needs of the mothers should be provided.