Feeling informed versus being informed: Mixed-methods analysis of family perceptions and behavior following a pediatric emergency department visit

Purpose: To examine perceptions of family-centered care, satisfaction, and quality of communication with health professionals during a pediatric emergency department visit, and to evaluate the perceived usefulness of the information received and whether provider treatment recommendations were followed after discharge. Design: Embedded mixed methods design with two concurrent phases. Participants in phase 1 were 385 adult relatives of children (age 6 days-17 years, mean 5.0 years, SD 4.5) seen in a pediatric emergency department. On the day of the visit, relatives completed questionnaires exploring perceptions of family-centered care, satisfaction (CSQ-8), and quality of communication with professionals (ad hoc instrument). For phase 2, we conducted daily structured telephone interviews with 37 of these parents over the six consecutive days following the emergency visit. Results: Satisfaction with the visit was significantly related to the perception of family-centered care (B = 0.25; 95% CI [0.20, 0.29]; p < .001). Follow-up interviews revealed that 45.9% (n = 17) of families did not follow the prescribed treatment and 32.4% (n = 12) made a further appointment with their primary care pediatrician. Qualitative analysis suggested that families lacked certain information from care providers. Conclusions: Elements of a family-centered approach were rated positively and families believed that the information they received was useful. Importantly, more than half of the families who were followed up by telephone had doubts about provider treatment recommendations. Practice implications: Family-centered care in the pediatric emergency department could enhance communication and help to ensure that treatment recommendations are followed at home.