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Mødre og helsesykepleieres erfaringer med søvnproblemer hos barn i alderen 6 måneder til 3 år

Forskere fra Regionsenter for barn og unges psykiske helse - øst og sør, VID vitenskapelige høgskole-Oslo og Universitetet i Oslo har i denne studien undersøkt mødres og helsesykepleieres erfaringer med søvnproblemer hos barn i alderen 6 måneder til 3 år. 14 mødre som hadde barn med søvnproblemer deltok i 2 semistrukturerte gruppeintervjuer og det samme gjorde 14 helsesykepleiere. Studien viste at mødrene ikke fikk godt nok hjelp med barnas søvnproblemer, noe som kan skyldes at helsesykepleiernes veiledning var uklar på grunn av kunnskapsmangel, tidspress og ressurser til å gjøre en helhetlig tilnærming til problemstillingen. Dette påvirket også negativt den terapeutiske alliansen mellom mor og helsesykepleier. Hyppigheten og påvirkningen søvnproblemer har på barn og foreldres helse og velvære tilsier at det er nødvendig med ytterligere forskning på foreldres subjektive opplevelser for å redusere konsekvensene av søvnproblemer hos små barn.

Publisert 02.12.2022

Hege Pettersen​ Sandtrø, Kari Glavin, Hege Therese Størksen, Marianne Therese Smogli Holter, Filip Drozd

Studien er publisert i Journal of Clinical Nursing

Aim and objective: The aim of this study was to explore mothers' and public health nurses' (PHN) experiences with sleep problems in children aged 6 months to 3 years in Norway.
Background: Sleep problems in children are common, affecting their health and development, and their mothers' well-being. It is also the primary reason parents seek help in well-child clinics (WCC). However, there is limited knowledge regarding the experiences of these mothers and the public health nurses who consult them.
Design: Qualitative design.
Methods: Four semi-structured focus group interviews were conducted: two with mothers (n = 14) who had children with sleep problems and two with public health nurses (n = 14) from well-child clinics. The Framework Method was used for analysing the interviews of mothers. Data from public health nurses were charted onto the analytical framework of maternal data to understand how or whether public health nurses addressed the issues raised by mothers. The study is reported according to the COREQ checklist.
Result: The analysis resulted in two main themes: 'therapeutic alliance' (categories 'alliance ruptures' and 'demanding negotiation process') and 'reorganisation of identity' (categories 'unfulfilled expectations' and 'internal tension conflicts').
Conclusion: Young children's sleep problems present challenges to new mothers due to failed expectations, negatively affecting their feelings as mothers and towards their children, and consequently the reorganising of maternal identity. Most mothers experienced unsatisfactory therapeutic alliances while seeking help from public health nurses because advice was considered overly general, contradictory and unsafe for their children. Public health nurses were mostly aware of the parental consequences of children's sleep problems, but many appeared unable to help because of limited time and knowledge.
Relevance to clinical practice: Public health nurses need to establish a therapeutic alliance and provide evidence-based knowledge and guidance on sleep problems while also considering women's reorganisation of identity when becoming mothers.