My home — the hospital: A case study

Abstract

The first years of life, so important in a child’s development, should be spent with its mother in a normal family environment. If the child is denied this, then permanent emotional and intellectual disability can result. This article describes how we tried to prevent this from occurring in Andrew, a little boy who had to spend the first three years of his life in hospital because of a tracheostomy. Hopefully, this account will help others who deal with chronically hospitalised children to anticipate some of the problems that can arise and give them an insight into the vital role of the nurse in dealing with the situation.