Family Support and Mental Health in Mothers of Children in a Pediatric ICU

This study assessed the perception of family support and mental health in mothers of children hospitalized in the Pediatric ICU (PICUs) through four measures, and two during the hospitalization, one after the high-sector and another one months of hospital discharge. Participated 14 mothers of children hospitalized in PICUs a hospital-school state of Brazil. The instruments used were: roadmap for identification, Inventory Perception of Family Support (IPSF) and General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). The results suggested significant variation in the mental health of mothers in the four moments, observing improvement to the hospital. Support family did not vary in the measures; therefore no correlation was found between mental health and family support.