Home community cancer care: parents' perspectives.

This article reports on the results of a survey on the needs of parents of children with cancer and explores the needs of the parents, the parents' perceived importance of the needs, and whether the needs have been met. The study was designed to identify any differences in needs between parents whose children received all of their care at the major tertiary center (n = 16) and parents whose children received at least some of their care in their local community (n = 40). There were no significant differences between the two groups. Parents reported that their important needs for information were met, but other needs (financial assistance, time, and rest) were unmet. Findings indicate that health care providers who care for families of children with cancer need to perform careful individual assessments throughout the treatment period.