Children facing a family memberʹs acute illness: A review of intervention studies

Background A review of psycho-educational intervention studies to benefit children adapting to a close (parent, sibling, or grandparent) family memberʹs serious illness was conducted. Objectives To review the literature on studies addressing this topic, critique research methods, describe clinical outcomes, and make recommendations for future research efforts. Data sources Research citations from 1990 to 2005 from Medline, CINAHL, Health Source: Nursing/Academic Edition, PsycARTICLES, and PsycINFO databases were identified. Review methods Citations were reviewed and evaluated for sample, design, theoretical framework, intervention, threats to validity, and outcomes. Reviewed studies were limited to those that included statistical analysis to evaluate interventions and outcomes. Results Six studies were reviewed. Positive outcomes were reported for all of the interventional strategies used in the studies. Reviewed studies generally lacked a theoretical framework and a control group, were generally composed of small convenience samples, and primarily used non-tested investigator instruments. They were diverse in terms of intervention length and intensity, and measured short-term outcomes related to participant program satisfaction, rather than participant cognitive and behavioral change. Conclusions The paucity of interventional studies and lack of systematic empirical precision to evaluate intervention effectiveness necessitates future studies that are methodologically rigorous.