Impact of an educational program for parents of children with cancer on the increased knowledge of their children's disease and the decrease in anxiety

Purpose: To determine the impact of an educational program provided by a nurse to parents of children with cancer to improve the level of knowledge of the disease and to decrease the levels of anxiety. Patients and methods: A prospective randomized study was conducted on parents of children recently diagnosed with cancer and treated in the Hospital Luis Calvo Mackenna. After informed consent, parents were randomized in two groups: one receiving the educational program and another without intervention. Both groups completed a questionnaire on social risk, and three tests to assess the levels of knowledge and anxiety. Results: A total of 96 parents were enrolled (July 2010-November 2011). When comparing the number of correct responses on day 10, and day 90 after the intervention, a significant increase was observed in the level of parental knowledge in the group that received the educational program (P<.0001). No significant differences were observed in the levels of anxiety (P=.06) between both groups. Conclusions: An educational program provided by nurses to parents of children recently diagnosed with cancer, increased the knowledge of their children's disease. However there was no effect on the levels of anxiety. A feasible educational intervention is proposed that could be implemented at other cancer centers for children. (C) 2015 Sociedad Chilena de Pediatria. Published by Elsevier Espana, S.L.U.