Perspectives Of Primary Health Care Needs By Chronically Ill Adolescents And Their Parents

This current descriptive correlational study is a replication of Dragone\u27s (1990) research. Three null hypotheses guided this current study. Ho1: There is no significant difference in degree of agreement between perceptions of the top five primary health care needs identified by chronically ill adolescents and their parents HOg: There is no difference in degree of agreement of perceptions of primary health care needs among early, middle, and late age groups of chronically ill adolescents. HO]: There is no difference in use of health care professionals as resources between parents and chronically ill adolescents. Orlando\u27s Nursing Process Theory (1961) provided a framework for this replication study. A 60-item comprehensive Primary Health Care Needs Assessment was utilized to address issues related to health promotion, illness management, and developmental issues. Agreement between perceptions of specific age groups and between parent and adolescent groups were analyzed. Utilization of health care professionals as resources also was investigated. Adolescents were persons in the age range of 11-19 years, and the parents were primary caretakers to the adolescents. The setting was a major medical center in a iii southeastern state. A 20-paired sample (N = 20) of convenience was accessed and personally interviewed on site in specialty outpatient clinics which included diabetes, pulmonology, rheumatology, hematology, and oncology. Informed consent was obtained from parent and adolescent subjects. Data on the primary health care perspectives were analyzed through descriptive statistics and chi-square analysis. Adolescents identified sociopersonal and behavioral adaptative issues as their primary health care needs. There was a 76% degree of agreement on concerns between parent and adolescent groups. Chi-square analysis indicated a difference in agreement regarding physical concerns between specific age groups of adolescents at .05 level of significance. Descriptive statistics indicated that parents were the resources utilized most frequently by both groups. This research supports Dragone’s (1990) original study and the need for further studies on the perceptions of chronically ill adolescents and their parents. It further suggests the study of other influential variables on perceptions in chronically ill adolescents, such as ethnicity, economics, and education. Finally, this research suggests several avenues for study in the role of the nurse in chronic illness affecting adolescent populations