It is Time we Become Child Centered at all Children’s Hospitals

In the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) family- and childcentered care does not have the same prepared tools to relay on as, for example, neonatal care. In neonatal care the parents are quickly involved in the child's care. The caring philosophy NIDCAP (Newborn individualized Developmental Care and Assessment Program) and SFS-Situation adapted family co-operation, are both adapted for the child and for the parents. Both these "utensils" are based on individualizing the nursing care from a family-centered perspective. However, the same prepared tools or tools are not available from a child-centered care perspective, which gives the child a disadvantage and every act of involvement rests upon the nurse’s knowledge and ability to vindicate such child centered care in the caring situation [1]. According to the United Nations Convention on Children's Rights [2], the child´s best interest needs to be put firsthand when health and medical care is given to children. The idea is that the child should be in the center. The focus is thus moved from a family-centered perspective, to a child-centered perspective.