Background
This study assumes that all human interaction is fundamentally social and that nurses, on the basis of their knowledge, organize their professional work and interact in sense that is meaningful to them in different situations. Current research shows that nurses find it important to work in trustful relationships with family caregivers during their child’s hospitalization. Family involvement is formalized according to cultural circumstances that is shaped by community culture, organisational hospital culture, nursing culture and view of generic care captured by traditions in families and a professional view of care learned through nursing training. The social understanding implies that staff share beliefs and ideas as ‘common thinking,’ which influences the way they act in everyday situations.
Aim
To explore nurses’ beliefs and practice regarding family involvement in the care of hospitalised children in Sweden and Mozambique.
Methods
Ethnographic fieldwork was used, with a combination of participant observation, reflective talks and interviews. The subjects in Sweden were 30 nurses and in in Mozambique 36 nurses. The observations of each nurse in their daily interaction with family caregivers and their children were followed by an interview. Constant comparative analyses were used to construct themes of action strategies and beliefs.
Results
The findings show that nurses’ practice of family involvement reflects the conditions in the society. However there are similarities in nurses’ beliefs and strategies in everyday practice. Even though the nurses use different action styles when encountering family caregivers, the dominant process in both Sweden and Mozambique was a socialization of the family caregivers to an expected role on the hospital ward. However some nurses used skills which revealed empowerment characteristics. The opportunity for nurses to develop culturally congruent family involvement is closely connected to community awareness, nurses’ empowerment and children’s rights.