Learning needs of relatives of children and teenagers under oral antineoplastic chemotherapy treatment

ABSTRACT

Objective

to describe the learning needs of family members of children and adolescents with cancer regarding treatment with oral antineoplastic chemotherapies.

Method

a descriptive qualitative research developed in a federal hospital in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Data were collected in the months from July to September 2020 from semi-structured interviews with twenty-three family members of children and adolescents with cancer undergoing oral antineoplastic chemotherapy. Data was processed in the software Interface de R pour Analyses Multidimensionnelles de Textes et de Questionnaires by the Descending Hierarchical Classification.

Results

among the themes that demand learning by the family members are oral administration, storage and handling of oral antineoplastic drugs, as well as adverse effects and emergencies that require hospital care.

Conclusion and implications for practice

in oral antineoplastic treatment, the learning needs of family members of children and adolescents need to be problematized in dialogic educational practices in order to favor the safety, adherence, and efficacy of the treatment.

Keywords:
Oral Administration; Adolescent; Antineoplastic Agents; Children; Family