For the families, not allowing the fathers to accompany
their children in the pediatric wards was among the
restrictive regulations of the healthcare system. This issue,
which can be attributed to the religious and cultural beliefs in
Iran, has not been mentioned in previous studies. Parents’
participation in their children’s postoperative pain management
is encouraged by the family support network and
conversely is discouraged by disruption to the family’s daily
life , and feelings of loneliness (Coyne, 1995; Lam et al.,
2006). Reducing the fathers’ direct role in the provision of
care to their hospitalized children while assigning all
responsibilities to the mothers jeopardizes the family’s
coherence, reduces the family members’ support for each
other, and exerts negative effects on pain management in
children.