Introduction
Existing literature shows that people who experience systemic racism, oppression, and discrimination are more likely to have negative hospital outcomes and are at higher risk of mental health concerns. Enhancing the scope for improvement in such areas would require recognition of these inequities. Hence the Design Justice Model was used to inform the development of the survey questionnaire to be inclusive, equitable and responsive to the needs and perspectives of diverse populations. This project contributes to a larger study that explores the impact of personal identity/diversity on patients and caregivers' experiences with inpatient pediatric psychology services.
Methods
Eight semi-structured interviews were conducted with parents/caregivers of admitted pediatric patients who were seen by the inpatient psychology team in a tertiary medical hospital. The transcribed interviews were coded and analyzed via descriptive matrix to develop common themes. These themes were then used to craft a mixed methods survey questionnaire for the larger study including both quantitative and qualitative questions to evaluate both parent/caregiver and adolescent patient's experiences with the inpatient pediatric psychology service.
Results
The comprehensive analysis of the semi-structured interview data revealed several prominent themes, encompassing perceptions of identity and care, previous experiences with mental health services, mental health stigma, shared decision making preferences, values in healthcare, concordance in patient-provider perceptions and expectations, perceptions of connection with providers, administrative challenges and recommendations to improve processes and care. Integration of the identified themes into the final survey questionnaire helped capture the nuances of participants' perceptions and experiences thus addressing our key aspects of interest holistically.
Conclusions
The exploration of identity and mental health within inpatient psychology services uncovered various themes that bridged the gap between individual narratives and broader perceptions of identity. The use of design justice in the development of the mixed methods survey questionnaire led to the discovery of diverse viewpoints which helped to better understand parent and caregiver perceptions and experiences. These findings not only contribute to the existing body of knowledge but also provide a foundation to future research and interventions to enhance patient-caregiver experiences among diverse populations.