Caring for children with cancer : A literature-based study about nurses´ experiences

Background: There are 2,2 million children living in Sweden and every day about one child is diagnosed with cancer. Nurses have an important role in nursing the sick child and comforting it´s families. Little is known about the nurses´ experiences in working with this severely ill children. Aim: The aim of this study was to highlight nurses´ experiences of caring for children with cancer. Method: A method to contribute to evidence-based nursing with the ground in analysis of qualitative research was conducted. An analysis of fourteen qualitative articles was carried out. The analysis resulted in four main themes and eleven subthemes. Result: Four main themes emerged; The adequate knowledge needed, Difficulties in ethical stance, Caring relationships where the child is in the centre, Emotional contrasts. The results of the study showed that the nurses experienced that they were not fully-trained and that the knowledge was not sufficient when they were new to childhood cancer. The nurses experienced a lot of emotions caring for children with cancer and felt it valuable to use coping to deal with the upcoming emotions and prevent emotional burn-out. Conclusion:More knowledge in childhood cancer is needed for nurses caring for children sick with cancer. It is important for the nurses to see the child's best, but also to work family-centered. The work is emotionally stressful and requires coping strategies to prevent emotional burnout