How Classmates Experience Visiting Their Hospitalised Peer During Cancer Treatment: A RESPECT Study

ABSTRACT

Aim

To explore how classmate ‘ambassadors’ experienced and engaged in social interaction while visiting a hospitalised peer undergoing cancer treatment.

Design

A phenomenological-hermeneutic inspired exploratory study.

Methods

Using on-the-go semi-structured interviews and participant observations from January to December 2023 in Denmark, we included 27 school-aged ambassadors aged 6–18 years old; 18 participated in pre- and post-visit interviews, while all 27 took part in observations during 19 visits. Van Manen's phenomenological-hermeneutic approach guided thematic analysis.

Results

Six themes emerged: (1) visiting the hospital, (2) being supportive, (3) aligning expectations, (4) being unsure, (5) safeguarding the relationship and (6) leaving the hospital. Ambassadors were eager to visit, seeking to be good friends by offering social, emotional and physical support. They were mindful of the information shared to prevent the hospitalised children from feeling excluded. Social interactions often involved allowing the hospitalised children to take on decision-making roles, recognising their well-being as a priority.

Conclusion

Ambassadors found hospital visits meaningful as they wanted to make a difference and sought to support their hospitalised peers. Their role was shaped by their understanding of friendship and the disease trajectory. Social interactions were largely conflict-free due to the pre-visit alignment of expectations.

Implications for Profession or Patient Care

Classmates found visits meaningful and wished to make a difference. Healthcare professionals should facilitate visits to strengthen social connections between the hospitalised child and their surroundings as a part of family-centred care within paediatric oncology.

Impact

Problem: Cancer treatment often causes social disruption for children with cancer, making the transition to everyday life more difficult post-treatment.

Main Findings

Classmates were eager to visit hospitalised peers, demonstrating awareness of cancer and a desire to support them.

Research Impact

Facilitating classmate visits may enhance classmates' understanding of cancer and aid hospitalised children's reintegration into everyday life.

Reporting Method

The COREQ checklist was used.

Patient or Public Contribution

Ambassadors contributed to designing the interview guides.

Global Clinical Contribution

Enhances knowledge of supporting social relationships between hospitalised children and their classmates during cancer treatment. However, the RESPECT study is rooted in the Danish cultural context, where it is common to attend local volunteer activities after school. Although getting diagnosed with a life-threatening illness such as cancer may be difficult to talk about with peers and even a taboo in some countries, we do expect that interventions with structured possibilities for social interactions are an important step towards normalisation of communicating about childhood cancer.