International journal of palliative nursing
-
The changes within children's palliative care services in the UK over the last decade highlight the importance of respite provision. This article reports on an evaluation of a children's hospice in northern England that was undertaken to elicit the views of 24 service users on their experiences of respite care in the hospice: parents, children and young people, siblings, guardians and family carers. ⋯ The findings demonstrate the tensions that parents in need of respite care feel as a result of the power unconsciously exercised by staff. Redistribution of resources and reordering of priorities are recommended to prevent the inadvertent impact upon families.