Ending cancer treatment: experiences of children, parents and staff
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Ending cancer treatment: experiences of children, parents and staff.
IRAS ID
284109
Contact name
Rebecca Sweet
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
GREAT ORMOND STREET HOSPITAL FOR CHILDREN NHS FOUNDATION TRUST
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
This study aims to examine the end of cancer treatment in children from a psychological perspective. This is needed because although much has been written about psychological sequelae for childhood cancer survivors, and psychological functioning following the end of treatment, there is no literature that focuses on experiences of the ending itself. Hospitals have implemented rituals and practices, such as the end of treatment bell, with no existing evidence base and little understanding of the impact these have on children, families and staff teams.
Three clinical psychology doctoral trainees will separately interview patients, parents and staff about their experiences of the end of treatment in paediatric oncology. Participants will be recruited from the paediatric oncology service at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH). Three groups will be interviewed for this research:
1) Children aged 8-14 years of age who have completed cancer treatment involving chemotherapy within the last 3-18 months.
2) Parents of children in the group outlined above.
3) Multi-disciplinary staff who have worked in paediatric oncology for at least 6 months.Each participant will be invited to attend one semi-structured interview, asking about their experiences of ending cancer treatment. The data will be analysed using Interpretative phenomenological analysis. There will be a secondary stage of analysis synthesising the three data sets.
It is anticipated that having a better understanding of how children, families and staff currently experience the end of treatment will help to inform clinical practice around supporting children and their families at this significant milestone.
REC name
London - Bloomsbury Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
20/PR/0295
Date of REC Opinion
14 Oct 2020
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion