Maternal perspective about the medical assistance received by the children hospitalized in two hospitals of salvador, Bahia

Abstract

The emotional condition of the child and the parents expectation should be taken into account by all healthcare providers. Furthermore, specific training needs must be considered. (1) Assessment of maternal perception about the medical assistance received by the children; (2) identify human aspects valued  by the family; (3) Assess maternal knowledge about the children’s disease. Quantitative exploratory study, with quantitative data. Questionnaires were applied to mothers of children hospitalized for at least 48 hours in a public hospital (A) and in a private hospital (B) of Salvador, Bahia.  A total of 50 mothers (25 in each hospital) participated ; 72 % (B) and 52% (a) agreed that anything was lacking in the medical assistance; 66% (33) valued a tender and attentive treatment by the doctors; 36% (13) highlighted the technical competence and the language used to explain the disease for the family’s comprehension; 44% (B) and 18% (A) (p < 0,001) affirmed that had received a clear explanation about the disease and when these data were associated with the mother’s level of education a pure Prevalence Ratio (PR) of 2,13 (1,37; 3,32) and a PR corrected for the hospital between 1,19 and 1,98 were obtained. In both hospitals, the human aspects were pointed out and a significant fraction of mothers were satisfied. It is important to highlight that in the private hospital, mothers understood their son’s disease better, maybe because of a higher level of formal education. Additional data are necessary to assess the influence of the socio-demographic characteristics of the mothers in the parents-healthcare providers relationship.