Family-centered care: Practice and preparation

Although family-centered care is an expectation empirical data describing its use in practice or the extent to which practitioners are prepared to practice it are minimal. The purpose of this project was to describe views of family-centered practice reported by practitioners serving children. Health care practitioners serving children in I state were invited to a conference to discuss family-centered care and to assess their perceptions about its use and their practice preparation. Participants (N = 76) discussed family-centered care, opportunities and obstacles for its practice, and improvements for preparation. Findings from questionnaires and focus groups showed that most participants adhered to family-centered concepts and a subsample (n = 28) showed an increased use with a mean of 7.36 Likert gain scores on posttest following the conference. Suggestions for educators are offered.