Understanding Associations Between Social Determinants Of Health, Parental Participation, and development of Parenting Confidence in Congenital Heart Defect Care

Abstract

Parental participation in the care of hospitalized children is an important element of the parental role and is associated with positive child and parent outcomes including parenting confidence. How parental participation is defined, how parents describe their participation, and the influences of social determinants of health and social interactions in the healthcare setting on parental participation are not well understood. The purpose of this dissertation is to describe the relationships among social determinants of health, healthcare social interactions, parental participation, and parenting confidence among parents of children diagnosed with cardiac conditions requiring hospital care utilizing various research methods including conceptual delineation, quantitative study, and qualitative study using primary and secondary analysis. The findings suggest that social determinants of health influence parental participation in their child’s hospital care via parenting confidence. Additionally, findings illuminate dynamic relationships between parental participation and confidence influenced by healthcare social interactions. This research emphasizes the need for empathetic care from providers to support parents’ confidence and enable parental participation in children hospitalized for cardiac care. Future research should examine the instrumental and relational support parents need to enhance their parenting confidence, and the resources providers need to offer such support.