Communicating with Children When a Parent is at the End of Life


Book Description

When a parent is nearing the end of life, children can feel like their world has been turned upside down, and they are often scared and confused about what is happening. Sensitive and clear communication with children is vital to help them understand and cope with their parent's illness. This accessible book demonstrates how to support children through effective and sensitive communication, covering types of communication, language, information sharing, and overcoming common barriers. Developing confidence and skills such as talking, listening, giving children a voice and breaking bad news is also covered. The author outlines the concept of a 'communication continuum' which can be used to assess how much a child knows or understands about their parent's illness and how much they would like to know. The book contains a wealth of practical strategies and ideas, as well as case vignettes, practice tips and reflective exercises. This is an essential resource for anyone working with or supporting a child whose parent is at the end of life, including palliative care workers, nurses, social workers, teachers and counsellors.




The Gift of Gerbert's Feathers


Book Description

As Gerbert prepares for his final migration, his family rallies around him to make his remaining time loving and special. Gerbert finds a way to show his flock that he will always be with them. Includes a one-page Note to Readers and an online Note with additional information useful for parents, caregivers, grandparents, siblings, and teachers.




Communicating with Kids


Book Description

Confused by all the conflicting parenting advice you hear? Not sure who is right or what to do? Well, relax and read this book. Ever wondered why your child gets more upset the nicer you are? Or why your child is always arguing with you, doesn’t listen or seems intent on doing the opposite of what you want? Now you no longer have to worry – Communicating with Kids has the answers. This new book explains how so often children are not resisting our messages but the way we are sending them. It demonstrates why some of the ways we communicate lead to exactly the opposite of the behaviour we want, and provides methods to tweak your language and approach so that children are willing to help you. So much of the parenting advice we hear works against a child’s developing brain, so this book shows you how to work with it instead – which makes all the difference. Once you understand the difference between what you are saying and what your child actually hears, life with children becomes so much easier. This book is all about communication because apart from that, there’s no other advice you need; the best way to bring up your child is to be yourself and do it your way. Communicating with Kids is a book guaranteed to help all parents, whether they veer towards the methods of Penelope Leach or Supernanny, or have never read a parenting book before. It is not based on any parenting ideology, but on genuine experience with a wide range of children. It is a plain-talking book that presents communication methods that work, so parents gain the confidence to be themselves.




When Children Die


Book Description

The death of a child is a special sorrow. No matter the circumstances, a child's death is a life-altering experience. Except for the child who dies suddenly and without forewarning, physicians, nurses, and other medical personnel usually play a central role in the lives of children who die and their families. At best, these professionals will exemplify "medicine with a heart." At worst, families' encounters with the health care system will leave them with enduring painful memories, anger, and regrets. When Children Die examines what we know about the needs of these children and their families, the extent to which such needs areâ€"and are notâ€"being met, and what can be done to provide more competent, compassionate, and consistent care. The book offers recommendations for involving child patients in treatment decisions, communicating with parents, strengthening the organization and delivery of services, developing support programs for bereaved families, improving public and private insurance, training health professionals, and more. It argues that taking these steps will improve the care of children who survive as well as those who do notâ€"and will likewise help all families who suffer with their seriously ill or injured child. Featuring illustrative case histories, the book discusses patterns of childhood death and explores the basic elements of physical, emotional, spiritual, and practical care for children and families experiencing a child's life-threatening illness or injury.




Communication in Cancer Care


Book Description

This book covers all the relevant aspects of communication in cancer care, such as communication in cancer prevention and genetic counseling, communication at different stages of disease and communication with the family and children. In addition, more general topics are discussed, such as the benefits and evidence of communication skills training and the challenges of interdisciplinary and cross-cultural communication.




Pediatric Palliative Care


Book Description

Pediatric palliative care is a field of significant growth as health care systems recognize the benefits of palliative care in areas such as neonatal intensive care, pediatric ICU, and chronic pediatric illnesses. Pediatric Palliative Care, the fourth volume in the HPNA Palliative Nursing Manuals series, highlights key issues related to the field. Chapters address pediatric hospice, symptom management, pediatric pain, the neonatal intensive care unit, transitioning goals of care between the emergency department and intensive care unit, and grief and bereavement in pediatric palliative care. The content of the concise, clinically focused volumes in the HPNA Palliative Nursing Manuals series is one resource for nurses preparing for specialty certification exams and provides a quick-reference in daily practice. Plentiful tables and patient teaching points make these volumes useful resources for nurses.




Doing Life with Your Adult Children


Book Description

Are you struggling to connect with your child now that they've left the nest? Are you feeling the tension and heartache as your relationship dynamic begins to change? In Doing Life with Your Adult Children, bestselling author and parenting expert Jim Burns provides practical advice and hopeful encouragement for navigating this tough yet rewarding transition. If you've raised a child, you know that parenting doesn't stop when they turn eighteen. In many ways, your relationship gets even more complicated--your heart and your head are as involved as ever, but you can feel things shifting, whether your child lives under your roof or rarely stays in contact. Doing Life with Your Adult Children helps you navigate this rich and challenging season of parenting. Speaking from his own personal and professional experience, Burns offers practical answers to the most common questions he's received over the years, including: My child's choices are breaking my heart--where did I go wrong? Is it OK to give advice to my grown child? What's the difference between enabling and helping? What boundaries should I have if my child moves back home? What do I do when my child doesn't seem to be maturing into adulthood? How do I relate to my grown child's significant other? What does it mean to have healthy financial boundaries? How can I support my grown children when I don't support their values? Including positive principles on bringing kids back to faith, ideas on how to leave a legacy as a grandparent, and encouragement for every changing season, Doing Life with Your Adult Children is a unique book on your changing role in a calling that never ends.




Supporting the Child and the Family in Paediatric Palliative Care


Book Description

Supporting the Child and the Family in Paediatric Palliative Care provides a comprehensive overview of good practice in caring for terminally-ill children, young people and their families. Drawing from extensive personal experiences of working in paediatric palliative care, the author provides guidance on issues including symptom management and pain relief; cultural, religious and spiritual aspects of care; and the role of education for life-limited children. Addressing the importance of individual needs, the book looks at emotional, social and cognitive support at different stages of the illness, how parents and professionals can respond to children's own questions about death, and the impact of life-limiting illness on the whole family - including grandparents and siblings. The material offers helpful suggestions on how to support families in making informed choices during distressing periods, such as where their child will die and how to prepare for the funeral. This book is a practical and invaluable tool for nurses, paediatricians, hospice care staff, bereavement counsellors and all those caring for life-limited children.




Handbook of Communication in Oncology and Palliative Care


Book Description

Communication is a core skill for medical professionals when treating patients, and cancer and palliative care present some of the most challenging clinical situations. This book provides a comprehensive curriculum to help oncology specialists optimize their communication skills.




Why Is My Child in Charge?


Book Description

Solve toddler challenges with eight key mindshifts that will help you parent with clarity, calmness, and self-control. In Why is My Child in Charge?, Claire Lerner shows how making critical mindshifts—seeing children’s behaviors through a new lens —empowers parents to solve their most vexing childrearing challenges. Using real life stories, Lerner unpacks the individualized process she guides parents through to settle common challenges, such as throwing tantrums in public, delaying bedtime for hours, refusing to participate in family mealtimes, and resisting potty training. Lerner then provides readers with a roadmap for how to recognize the root cause of their child’s behavior and how to create and implement an action plan tailored to the unique needs of each child and family. Why is My Child in Charge? is like having a child development specialist in your home. It shows how parents can develop proven, practical strategies that translate into adaptable, happy kids and calm, connected, in-control parents.