Purpose: This study aims to describe the sleep experience of parents staying overnight with their children in hospital.
Design and methods: Parents (n = 102) completed the Verran and Snyder-Halpern Sleep Scale following a night spent with their children in an Australian tertiary pediatric hospital.
Results: Parents experienced sleep deprivation and poor quality of sleep, reporting a mean sleep period of 4.6 hr (SD = 2.1). Having only one child in the room was the only variable that significantly influenced the quality or amount of parental sleep.
Practice implications: Parental sleep deprivation needs to be acknowledged and accommodated when nurses and parents negotiate the care of children in hospital.