Table 4. . Findings from healthcare professionals who care for growth hormone deficiency.

Topics	Healthcare providers
The choice to work in pediatrics endocrinology	n = 17; Interest in pediatric growth problems: 7 (41%); passion: 6 (35%); other: 4 (24%)
What I try to transmit to patients during the medical visits	n = 30a); Tranquillity: 14 (39%); my availability: 10 (31%); empathy: 5 (27%); information: 1 (3%)
During the communication of the diagnosis	n = 18; I pay attention to the language: 8 (52%); I focus on the solution of the treatment: 5 (31%); I use examples: 4 (13%); I give parents the choice: 1 (4%)
The most difficult issues in managing the therapy	The families’ daily task: 21 (34%); the injection: 12 (21%); the family's level of compliance: 8 (14%); the fear for the side effects: 7 (13%); the medical visits: 5 (9%); the anxiety for the result: 4 (7%); the individuation of possible problems: 1 (2%)
Relationships with patients	n = 19; Important: 8 (42%); particularly important with children: 6 (31%)
Relationships with patients’ families	n = 19; Important: 5 (26%)
Relationships with colleagues	n = 19; Important: 7 (37%); to be empowered: 5 (26%)
The quality of the offered services of care	n = 19; Satisfied: 15 (80%)
Style of narration	n = 18b); Disease-centered: 6 (33%); between disease/illness-centered: 5 (28%); illness-centered: 7 (39%)

^†The indicated numbers can imply more than one answer from each healthcare professional.

^‡In not all the stories were possible to use the classification of Kleinman.