TY  - JOUR
T1  - PEace of mind and sense of purpose as core existential issues among parents of children with cancer
AU  - Mack JW, Wolfe J, Cook E, Grier HE, Cleary PD, Weeks JC
Y1  - 2009/06/01
N1  - 10.1001/archpediatrics.2009.57
JO  - Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine
SP  - 519
EP  - 524
VL  - 163
IS  - 6
N2  - Objective 
    To evaluate issues experienced by parents of children with cancer and factors related to parents' ability to find peace of mind.Design 
    Cross-sectional survey.Setting 
    Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.Participants 
    One hundred ninety-four parents of children with cancer (response rate, 70%) in the first year of cancer treatment.Main Outcome Measure 
    The Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy–Spiritual Well-being sense of meaning subscale.Results 
    Principal components analysis of Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy–Spiritual Well-being sense of meaning subscale responses identified 2 distinct constructs, peace of mind (Cronbach α = .83) and sense of purpose (Cronbach α = .71). Scores ranged from 1 to 5, with 5 representing the strongest sense of peace or purpose. One hundred forty-seven of 181 parents (81%) scored 4 or higher for questions related to sense of purpose (mean [SD] score, 4.4 [0.6]). Only 44 of 185 parents (24%) had scores in the same range for peace of mind (mean [SD] score, 3.2 [0.9]) (P < .001). In a multivariable logistic regression model, parents had higher peace of mind scores when they also reported that they trusted the oncologist's judgment (odds ratio [OR] = 6.65; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.47-30.02), that the oncologist had disclosed detailed prognostic information (OR = 2.05; 95% CI, 1.14-3.70), and that the oncologist had provided high-quality information about the cancer (OR = 2.54; 95% CI, 1.11-5.79). Peace of mind was not associated with prognosis (OR = 0.74; 95% CI, 0.41-1.32) or time since diagnosis (OR = 1.00; 95% CI, 0.995-1.003).Conclusions 
    Physicians may be able to facilitate formulation of peace of mind by giving parents high-quality medical information, including prognostic information, and facilitating parents' trust.
SN  - 1072-4710
M3  - doi: 10.1001/archpediatrics.2009.57
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/archpediatrics.2009.57
ER  -