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LETTERS: Sean P Maskey Children are still seen but not heard BMJ 2002; 325: 599a [Full text]

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Children should be heard in their family context

Chan C. Y. Zenobia   (18 September 2002)

Children should be heard in their family context 18 September 2002
Chan C. Y. Zenobia, RN PhD Candidate Part-time Lecturer Department of Social Work, The Chinese University of Hong Kong Send response to journal: Re: Children should be heard in their family context	Sean Maskey's article points the way for giving voices to children in medical systems. Several points I wish to add to state how we can reveal children's experiences in relation to their family context. Families offer the primary socialization for children. Parents are the first informal educators for children. The healthy parent-child relationships enhance children's good health. For example, positve parent- child communication helps children express their health needs to their parents openly and helps parents give health knowledge to their children effectively. In contrast, negative comunication hinders children to tell their illness experience and blocks parents to deliver health knowledge to the children as well. In particular, so-called psychosomatic problems of children are related to certain familial characteristics such as enmeshment, rigidity, over-protection, and conflict-avoidance (Minuchin et al, 1978). Children's symptoms affect their family relationships in a circular pattern. In turn, children's family relationships affect the symptoms. Therefore, to prevent symptom-oriented of children's illness and to understand the illness in their family-level is the first step. To invite family members' to support the sick children is the second step. To collaborate with the parents is the third step. To hear children's voices with a familial-sensitive mentality is a must for every health provider. Reference Minuchin, S., Rosman, B. & Baker, L. (1978). Psychosomatic families: Anorexia nervosa in context. USA: Harvard University Press.