Children in the hospital: issues of power and vulnerability.

Findings from a phenomenological study into the experience of pediatric nurses highlight the unequal power relationships between children and adults, including parents and health care providers. Based on the principle of 'in the child's best interest' this thinking has the potential to deny children an age appropriate right to be involved in health care decisions and may conflict with the tenets of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Adults are presumed competent to make health care decisions, children are presumed incompetent without any validation as to whether the child has the knowledge and ability to make the decision. Consent does not only apply to major procedures, but to all patient care activities. The right of access to children's bodies is always in the hands of others and some everyday practices may conflict with protective behavior education.