Online Social Support for Parents of Children with Special Health Needs (1CE)

Number of Credits: 1

This course is for:  Clinical Psychologists, Counselors, Nurses, and LMFTs

Course By: Tim Grigsby, PhD

Content By: DeHoff, B. A., Staten, L. K., Rodgers, R. C., & Denne, S. C. (2016). The role of online social support in supporting and educating parents of young children with special health care needs in the United States: A scoping review. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 18(12), e333.

Course Description: Giving birth to a child with special health care needs—such as diabetes or developmental disorders—is stressful as it leads to encountering overwhelming amounts of health information, complex care regimens, and encountering emotions about the long-term wellness of one’s child. Identifying the benefits and limitations of online social support sources is needed as mobile phones and access to the Internet become more ubiquitous in American society. Researchers discuss the state of research on use of text messaging, social media, and smartphone application use to garner social support among parents of children with special health care needs. Existing research is positive but more work is needed to understand how to effectively implement and evaluate online social support interventions for this population.

Learning Objectives:

1. Discuss two online platforms for parents of children with special health care needs can find social support
2. Compare and contrast the benefits of informational support and emotional support
3. Describe the strengths and limitations of using online platforms for social support when caring for a child with special health care needs

Course Outline:

• Read and understand The role of online social support in supporting and educating parents of young children with special health care needs in the United States: A scoping review
• Review the Course Description and Learning Objectives
• Reflect on the role of online social support to empower parents of children with special health care needs to reduce stress and navigate the healthcare system
• Work through the post-test questions; keep in mind that answer selections should be derived from the respective article
• Return to the referenced article for any missed questions and/or to better understand the benefits of seeking social support from online sources when caring for children with special health care needs

Implicit biases incorporate an association that occurs outside of conscious awareness that may resultantly lead to a negative patient evaluation derived from irrelevant characteristics; i.e. gender and/or race. A systematic review of the literature was conducted. Thirty-five studies identified the existence of implicit bias in healthcare professionals; all correlational studies evidenced a significant positive relationship between implicit bias levels and lower quality of care (FitzGerald & Hurst, 2017). Continued research in health care settings, combined with greater method homogeneity, should be employed to examine the occurrence and prevalence of implicit biases in healthcare settings as a strategic approach for mitigating related disparities (FitzGerald & Hurst, 2017).

Reference

FitzGerald, C., & Hurst, S. (2017). Implicit bias in healthcare professionals: A systematic review. BMC Med Ethics 18, 19. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12910-017-0179-8

Approvals: