Leading With Hope: A Qualitative Study Assessing Hope to Drive Improved Client Outcomes
Date
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Hope has a powerful influence on individuals, especially those battling critical illness. The problem is the Make-A-Wish wish-granting experience was never designed to improve the health care of children being granted a wish; thus, hope was a mere by-product of the wish experience. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to determine what sparked hope in children, thus providing Make-A-Wish with data to design a process with the objective to spark hope intentionally. Research exists on the power of hope and the ability for hopeful individuals to be more compliant with medical treatment; however, research on the power of an intentionally designed intervention to influence hope is lacking. Hope and resilience theory served as the theoretical framework. Research questions included how Make-A-Wish ensures the connectivity between hope and the wish experience and how the Make-A-Wish program inspires hope, which could stimulate health improvement. Fifteen parent participants whose children received their wish experience were recruited. Data were collected via semistructured interviews with the participants individually via Zoom. An inductive data analysis model was used to determine codes and themes from the interviews. The common themes identified were lifetime impact, mindset, anticipation, family involvement, experiences, and future-oriented goal. The research findings confirmed the role hope plays in the healthcare journey, validated that the wish engagement experiences are a vital part of the wish journey, and emphasized the importance of having a future-oriented goal to help their children’s journey through the illness. A future study should seek the child’s lived experience instead of parents’ experiences.