Bereavement and children's mental health: recognising the effects of early parental loss.

Parental death in childhood is a traumatic event and, as a consequence, bereaved children can be at an increased risk of developing mental health issues in adulthood. This article details an extended literature review that was undertaken to explore the effects of early parental death on bereaved children's mental health and identifies implications for healthcare practice. Several electronic databases were searched and eight articles were selected for inclusion in this review. Four themes were identified from the literature: child's age at parental death; cause of parental death; type of parental death; and cascading circumstances. Increased exposure to other adverse circumstances after a parent's death can also predispose an individual to psychopathology in adulthood, so such circumstances can serve as indicators of the potential effects on children's future mental health outcomes.

Applying communication skills in the provision of family-centred care: a reflective account.

Providing family-centred care is fundamental to children's nursing and requires the development of therapeutic relationships with parents, notably parents of children who are acutely unwell. Gaining parents' trust and engaging them in their child's care involves the use of optimal verbal and non-verbal communication techniques. Children's nursing students need to develop skills and confidence in using these techniques. This article is a reflective account by a children's nursing student on how communication concepts and techniques learned at university can be applied to practice. The student had undertaken a theoretical and practical communication module during which she had been introduced to techniques such as active listening and the SURETY model shortly before starting a practice placement in an acute care setting. Here she uses the 'What?, So what?, Now what?' framework to reflect on and learn from her placement. The article demonstrates how complementing theoretical knowledge with experiential learning, and combining this with reflection on action, can enhance students' confidence to deliver family-centred care.