6198 Children’s perspectives on play during hospitalisation: a driving force for patient-centred care in paediatrics

Objectives Play is an integral aspect of childhood. All children have a right to play and share their perspectives on matters that affect their lives.¹ Research shows that children's health is associated with their ability and willingness to play,² ³ and that young children perceive play as related to their sense of health and wellbeing.⁴ This research sought to understand how play is experienced by children when childhood occurs in a hospital setting. The aim of this work was to explore how play is integrated into paediatric hospitalisation from the perspectives of children as the experts of their own play experiences. Methods A qualitative study was conducted over five months on a paediatric haematology/oncology ward, consisting of ethnographic observations and semi-structured interviews with young patients and hospital staff. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to examine the data. Results Sixteen children, ages 3–13, participated in semi-structured interviews during their inpatient hospital stays. Three themes were generated from observational field notes as well as children's descriptions and demonstrations of play in hospital: Play is a natural aspect of childhood, but not a natural aspect of hospitals. Children need to feel safe and welcome to play. Playing in hospital is not always straightforward; children decide for themselves when play in hospital is helpful or good. Play is valuable to all children, regardless of context. Play is a way for paediatric patients to be children. Conclusion When children face early health adversity, there is a risk of dismissing or undervaluing the importance that play continues to hold within their childhoods. Children in this study expressed ways in which play is a crucial aspect of experiencing childhood in the atypical hospital environment, how play promotes their sense of choice and agency amidst health adversity, and their perception that engaging in play is related to demonstrating care. Respecting children as individuals with rights in hospital settings requires a more comprehensive understanding of and appreciation for children's own value for play as it relates to their experience of health care and wellbeing during childhood. These findings can inform how meaningful patient-centred care is implemented in paediatric settings. References Convention on the Rights of the Child, United Nations General Assembly, 1989. Koukourikos K, et al. The Importance of Play during Hospitalization of Children, 2015. Nijhof SL, et al. Healthy play, better coping: The importance of play for the development of children in health and disease, 2018. Robinson CA, Preschool children's conceptualizations of health and illness, 1987.