Information Needs Assessment among Parents of Children with Cancer

Abstract

Background: Parents of children with leukemia should be receiving an extensive amount of information about the<br />care of their child; the aim of this study was to determine the parents' information needs of children with leukemia.<br />Methods: A cross-sectional study design was used to describe medical, physical, mental and lifestyle information<br />needs among parents of children with leukemia. 209 parents of children diagnosed with leukemia in the west of Iran,<br />during winter 2018, voluntarily participated in individual interviews. Data were analyzed by SPSS version 16 using<br />t-test, One-way ANOVA and bivariate correlations statistical tests at 95% significant level. Results: The mean age of<br />participants was 39.45 years [95% CI: 38.35, 40.55], ranged from 27 to 58 years. Participants achieved 55.6% score<br />of information needs. There was a significant relationship between higher education level (P< 0.001), better economic<br />status (P=0.008) and more family size member (P=0.003) with information needs. Conclusion: Findings suggest that<br />parents of children with leukemia need the information to learn how to take care of their childhood and could be useful<br />for guiding implementers to planning and implement effective programs to promotion information of parents towards<br />children with cancer.