'You have to do what is best': The lived reality of having a child who is repeatedly hospitalized because of acute lower respiratory infection.

INTRODUCTION: Hospitalization of children is traumatic for children and their families. Little is known about the impact of repeated acute admissions on families, or of these experiences in Indigenous populations and ethnic minorities. This study explores the societal and health experiences for families who have a child under two years of age, admitted to hospitals more than twice for lower respiratory infections. METHODS: Underpinned by a reflective lifeworld research methodology, this article presents results from 14 in-depth interviews in Aotearoa/New Zealand. RESULTS: Families learn to identify illness early and then navigate hospital systems. These families struggle to create safe spaces for their children at home or in society. Wider social and economic support are central to family resilience, without which they struggle. CONCLUSION: This study reinforces the importance of bringing meaningful, culturally-responsive care to the fore of treatment, particularly when managing vulnerable minorities. Formal referral and support processes are key to this responsiveness to lessen the burdens of acute admissions for families. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: Families chose to be involved in this study to highlight the importance of the topic and their experiences with accessing health care. The cultural advisors to the project provided feedback on the analysis and its applicability for the participant community.

Occupying 'in-hospitable' spaces: Parental/primary-caregiver perceptions of the impact of repeated hospitalisation in children under two years of age.

The experience of having a child hospitalised is stressful and disrupts families in myriad ways; however, the experiences of parents/caregivers who encounter repeated admissions of a child with acute lower respiratory infections are under-researched. This project aims to explore these experiences, from a qualitative perspective, using the philosophical tenets of reflective lifeworld research. The research included 14 face-to-face interviews with parents, grandparents, or primary caregivers, of children who, whilst under two years of age, were admitted to hospital multiple times with a lower respiratory infection diagnosis. Many of the participants were from Maori or Samoan ethnic backgrounds. The findings of this single site study revealed that these parents/caregivers' experiences were characterised by feelings of powerlessness, offering descriptions of hospitals as harsh and difficult places to reside, they are 'in-hospitable'. The findings suggest that repeated hospitalisations created a cycle of stressful experiences that impacted both familial relationships and interactions with society. This study draws attention to this previously obscured population group, and calls health care practitioners and policy advisors to engage differently over issues involving families in similar positions.