Your Child in the Hospital: A Practical Guide for Parents

by Nancy Keene, Rachel Prentice

Millions of parents take a child to the hospital each year, whether for stitches, outpatient surgery, or longer stays. Children who are reassured about what lies ahead have less anxiety and cope more easily with procedures and treatments. Well-prepared parents can be calm and effective advocates for their children, in a situation that can otherwise be traumatic. Your Child in the A Practical Guide for Parents is a practical book of tips and wisdom from veteran parents that will help make any hospital stay easier. It includes essential information

Genres: Parenting

128 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1997

Reviews

[Thanaa Nazim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish I had this book when my daughter was admitted for a long time in the hospital and then she was diagnosed with rare cancer.
Its a small book and has alot of information and it talks about almost everything.

The only reason i gave it four stars instead of 5 is because in one of the chapters she said to taste every medication that your child take to describe it to you kid, And thats a big no, Simply because there is some dangerous meds. And my daughter's doctors always tell me don't ever taste the medicine its good for her but its very bad for you, And i'm talking about chemotherapy and steroids and other serious medications.
So in my opinion she should've mentioned that.

[Catherine Woodman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am the parent of a childhood cancer survivor and a physician. I have logged many an hour in the hospital both as a professional and as a parent. You would think that with all that schooling and on the job experience that being a parent of a hospitalized child would be a relative cake walk compared to the hospital naive adult. It turns out that is basically untrue. The only thing that being a doctor helps with is understanding the lingo and knowing your way to the cafeteria. The physical terrain is entirely familiar, but the emotional terrain is new, scary, and filled with land mines.

That is where this book comes in. It calmly, carefully, and lovingly takes parents through the entire experience of having a child in the hospital. There is some excellent and highly reproduced research that shows that when under stress patients only take in about 10% of what is said to them. Add the stress of a child being ill enough to require round the clock monitoring and having to juggle caring for siblings and what to do about work, and it is not hard to feel completely out of control. When my son was first diagnosed I laughed out loud when someone told me to take it one day at a time. I could not for the life of me manage more than 15 minutes at a time. I would spend 15 minutes with him, 15 minutes walking, and 15 minutes crying. Wash, rinse, repeat. It was a week before I could manage anything better than that.

This book can save your sanity. It helps with every facet of the hospital experience. It is readable. The advice is practical, and it comes from parents who have been there. This is wisdom that health care professionals lack, but every parent of a hospitalized child needs. It tells you how to get through it and how to make it bearable. It will brighten your day when you didn't think that was possible.

[PC · Rating 4 out of 5]

I do not have now, nor ever have I had a sick child. In fact, I have yet to have a child at all. Still.. I would dare anyone to say that I have not been a 'parent' in every single way and in every small nuance to those two precious people that were responsible for my birth - and everything good that I am today. Having three doting sisters and a big brother my upbringing was nonetheless as an Only-Child, this due to the fact that I came twenty two years too late to join them before they had families of their own. Therefore, in my adulthood it fell to me to care for the aging parents that had once been the generous, loving and strong protectors we were all so accustomed to in the past. Gradually my perception changed from that of a child... to include the love and responsibility of a parent as I witnessed their decline and made nursing my career. Eventually taking on the care of both in Renal Failure, I found that the undertaking of their care in Hospital had not only all the horrors, sorrows, emotional pitfalls, pain and effort endured by those that are (technically) parents of a sick child, but also included the stress of dealing with a unique prejudice leveled at the Elderly by medical professional personnel. This is apparent in almost every aspect of the protocol associated with the entire medical universe. I, therefore, must applaud this book and mention that the reader take it in a general sense to include not only one type of terminal affliction and age range... but a broad spectrum of each!
Thank you, Goodreads, for the opportunity to read and understand.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone studying to be a school psychologist, I feel this book would be helpful to both parents and other professionals who may work with kids in hospitals. It's written in a easy to read format (great for parents!), but it has enough detail to cover everything that parents may need to know. The book is well organized and a short read. I am definitely going to use this as a reference in the future when I work with parents of students who may need to go into the hospital for short or extended period of time. I received this book as part of the Good Reads First Reads program, and this is an honest review.

[Sarah the Great · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a much-needed and informative book for all parents whose children spend time in the hospital, be it for cancer, a chronic illness, or psychiatric disorder. As a mom, I felt like a fish out of water and so helpless and frustrated when my daughter ended up spending weeks at the hospital as a teenager. I really could have used this book. It helps you understand what to expect, how to advocate for your child, how to help your child manage the stay, and so forth. It's a great book for parents to have on hand or to gift to other parents whose child will be spending time in the hospital. Buy it today!

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful, comprehensive, practical guide for parents facing their child's hospital stay.
In the moment, it can be impossible to even think of the right questions to ask, what to bring, how to prepare. This almost pocket-sized book is a brilliant resource for parents who could really use some help.
I hope you never need this information, but if you do, this is the book you need.

[Sweetpea · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this book from the Goodreads First Reads Program in exchange for an honest review. This was a very comprehensive guide with lots of practical information for parents dealing with children facing hospitalization.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thought this was a very well done guide for parents with great information in it.