From Left: Moderator Holly Clark, Head of Child Life Services at Hamad Medical Corporation; Dr. Natalie Williams, Assistant Professor at the University of Nebraska Lincoln; Dr. Amal Khidir, Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medicine Qatar
DOHA: The importance of psychosocial care for the wellbeing of child patients has been highlighted in a new research report released by the Doha International Family Institute (DIFI), a member of Qatar Foundation (QF), yesterday.
‘Supporting Families and Children in Hospital’ through the presentation and discussion of case studies in Qatar, highlights the significant positive effect of parental involvement on the child’s recovery.
It was released during a seminar organised by DIFI in partnership with the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) at the Four Seasons Hotel.
“The illness of a child is a traumatic experience that affects the child and his or her family members. The stress of this experience could have an impact on family and marital relations, especially if the family relations are already tested. Psychosocial support mechanisms aim to enhance the overall well-being of child patients and their family members, and to strengthen their skills and abilities,” said Noor Al Malki Al Jehani, Executive Director, DIFI.
From Left: Dr Sadriya Al Kohji, National Lead of Child and Adolescent Health Strategy, MoPH; Noor Al Malki Al Jehani, Executive Director of DIFI; and Dr Natalie Williams, Assistant Professor at the University of Nebraska Lincoln, at the Seminar. Pic: Baher Amin / The Peninsula
“Research shows that family-centred care could improve patient and family outcomes, increase patient and family satisfaction, build on child and family strengths, increase professional satisfaction and decrease health care costs,” she added.
The report also focuses on challenges faced sometimes by health professionals when dealing with issues of parental neglect and lack of involvement.
The seminar focused on the psychosocial support services for child patients and their families in healthcare settings in Qatar. It emphasised importance of such services for enhancing the overall well-being of the patient and their family and also strengthening their skills and abilities to deal with their health care needs.
“We have prioritised the child and adolescent to ensure that they have the best health care. Qatar has almost half a million population who are less than 15 years old. They are facing several health related obstacles, physically and mentally. Child care services should look into empowering children despite challenges,” said Dr Sadriya Al Kohji, National Lead of Child and Adolescent Health Strategy at the MoPH.
Dr Natalie Williams, Assistant Professor, University of Nebraska-Lincoln and several local experts as well as health care professionals took part in several discussions during the seminar. Areas such as family centred approach to paediatric care, family resilience and adaptive response within the medical context, psychological care in paediatric healthcare settings and child life services in health care settings were discussed by experts during the panel discussions.
