METHOD: Surveys (Study 1) and semi-structured interviews (Study 2) were used to collect data. Thirty-eight respondents completed the Affiliate Stigma Scale (ASS), Caregiver Burden Inventory (CBI), and Care-related Quality of Life (CarerQol) scales (GMFCS). Eleven respondents took part in semi-structured interviews, which were then thematically evaluated.
RESULTS: Parents did not feel stigmatized because they had a child with CP. However, parents needed some form of short-term relief from caregiving. After controlling for demographics, high stress respondents experienced high affiliate stigma whereas low stress respondents had better quality of life. Although the respondents with less stigma had a better quality of life, this effect was moderate. Three major themes emerged from the interviews.
CONCLUSION: Counseling, support groups, and helper services should be offered to parents. Also, healthcare professionals participating in CP rehabilitation, community-based rehabilitation, and health institutions should be educated on how to better help parents of children with CP.
OBJECTIVE: This study aims to identify the determinants of non-adherence to unintentional home injury prevention practice among parents of under-five children in the North Seberang Perai district, Penang.
METHODS: This sequential explanatory mixed-methods study consists of two phases consisting of a quantitative study which looks into respondents and their child's sociodemographic status, their home injury prevention practice and the independent variables, followed by a qualitative study that interviews parents with non-adherence to home injury prevention practice and explore their barriers. In phase I, the parent or primary caregiver of a child age less than five years old who age 18 or older and is a Malaysian will be included in the study while being disabled or having a severe psychiatric disorder or having the index child diagnosed with chronic disease will make them not eligible to participate in the study. Derived using the two-group proportion formula, a sample size of 453 parents will be sampled among those with under-five children following up at the Maternal Child Health Department in the health clinics of North Seberang Perai using stratified systematic sampling. Chi-square/Fisher Exact test, simple logistic regression and multiple logistic regression will be used for data analysis. The sample will be stratified according to household income to look for associated factors and determinants of low prevention practice. In phase II, parents with a low score from the quantitative study will be selected to participate in the qualitative study using purposive sampling. A semi-structured interview using the help of an interview guide will be carried out and recorded with a voice recorder. The thematic analysis approach will be used to analyse the qualitative data.
RESULTS: The study has been registered under the National Medical Research Registry.
CONCLUSION: It is hoped that findings from this study can shed light on the barriers faced by under-five parents in carrying out preventive measures at home.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study on adolescents aged 13-18 years old. Upon ethical clearance obtained from UMMC Medical Ethics Committee, patients with colorectal, breast or lung cancer and their adolescent children were recruited from the Clinical Oncology Unit of University of Malaya Medical Centre. Respondents who gave consent completed a demographic questionnaire and the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory, via the post, email, home visit or meetings at the clinics.
RESULTS: 95 adolescents from 50 families responded, giving a response rate of 88 percent. The adolescent's mean age was 16 years (ranging between 13-18 years). Adolescents with parental cancer had the lowest mean score in emotional functioning (p<0.05). Male adolescents had significantly higher quality of life overall and in physical functioning compared to female adolescents. Adolescents with a father with cancer had better school functioning compared to adolescents whose mothers had cancer. Families with household income of RM 5000 and above have significantly better quality of life compared to families with lower household income.
CONCLUSIONS: Adolescent sons and daughters of parents with a cancer diagnosis show lowered QOL, particularly with reference to emotional functioning and school performance. Addressing the needs of this young group has been slow and warrants special attention. Revisiting the risk and resilience factors of adolescents might also inform tailored programs to address the needs of this neglected adolescent population.
DESIGN: An exploratory qualitative study with 55 parent-participants of Good Enough Parenting was conducted.
METHODS: One-to-one interviews were conducted with participants, using critical incident technique and guided by semi-structured interview schedule, to explore their experiences with the program. Transcripts were then analyzed using thematic analysis.
RESULTS: Coding showed a high degree of inter-rater reliability (kappa value of 0.78). The themes that emerged were Cultivating Awareness of Parents' Own Schemas, Cultivating Intentionality, Working through Developmental Issues, Responses to Challenges at Home, Performing Multiple Roles, and the Learning Process. Participants overwhelmingly reported satisfaction within these key themes.
CONCLUSIONS: The results support the development of the program and the choice of "participant reported outcome measures" for use in subsequent randomized controlled trials.
METHODS: Parents of children from birth to 17 years were recruited from two communities near Kuala Lumpur to participate in the government-run program called the Naungan Kasih Positive Parenting Program ("Protecting through Love" in Bahasa Melayu). Quantitative data from female caregivers (N = 74) and children ages 10-17 (N = 26) were collected along with qualitative interviews and focus groups with parents, children, and facilitators. The primary outcome was child maltreatment with secondary outcomes including neglect, positive parenting, acceptability of corporal punishment, harsh parenting, positive discipline, and child behavior problems. Multilevel Poisson regression and multilevel linear regression were conducted to compare baseline and post-test outcomes. Qualitative interviews and focus groups examined how participants experienced the program utilizing a thematic analysis approach.
RESULTS: Quantitative analyses found pre-post reductions in overall child maltreatment, physical abuse, emotional abuse, attitudes supporting corporal punishment, parent sense of inefficacy, and child behavior problems. There were no reported changes on positive and harsh parenting, parental mental health, and marital satisfaction, nor were there any other significant changes reported by children. Qualitative findings suggested that the program had tangible benefits for female caregivers involved in the program, with the benefits extending to their family members.
CONCLUSIONS: This feasibility study is one of the few studies in Southeast Asia that examined the feasibility and initial program impact of a parenting program delivered by government staff to families with children across the developmental spectrum from birth to 17 years. Promising results suggest that the program may reduce child maltreatment across a range of child ages. Findings also indicate areas for program improvement prior to further delivery and testing, including additional training and content on sexual and reproductive health, parenting children with disabilities, and online child protection.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in October 2022 in a School for Special Needs in Malang City, East Java Province, Indonesia. The pediatric quality of life inventory (PedsQL) and Institutional and Family Support questionnaire were used to measure the HRQoL and support perceived by parents of children with ASD. We analyzed each component of the PedsQL and the Institutional and Family Support questionnaire. The independent T-test was performed to analyze the association between HRQoL and perceived support by parents of children with ASD.
FINDINGS: The results showed that most participants (72.7%) were women aged 40. As many as 69.39% of participants had more than one child, and 16.33% declared they had other children who experienced the same problem (special needs children). This study indicated that the average health-related quality of life score in children with ASD was 57.41 (9.418). The finding of this study showed a significant mean difference in HRQoL scores in children with ASD who received high institutional and family support compared to those who had low (p = 0.028, 95% confidence interval [CI] = -11.071 to 0.664).
CONCLUSION: Institutional support positively impacts children with ASD's quality of life. Therefore, it is essential to improve the adequacy of support felt by families while caring for children with ASD.
METHODS: A cross-sectional HRQoL survey of Malaysian children with TDT was conducted using the PedsQL™ 4.0 Generic Core Scales. Patients with non-transfusion dependent thalassemia and other haemoglobinopathies were excluded. Parent-proxy and self-reported HRQoL scores were obtained using a multi-stage convenient sampling. The relationship between HRQoL scores and demographic factors were tested using association, correlation and regression analysis.
RESULTS: A total of 368 patients were recruited. The mean (SD) Total Summary Score (TSS) was 80.12(13.87). Predictors for a lower TSS was an increasing age group and the use of dual chelating agents (R2 = 0.057, F (4, 359) = 5.40, p =
METHODS: This qualitative study interviewed 12 Malaysian parents and 10 Malaysian teachers comprising of Malay (82%), Chinese (9%) and Indian (9%) races in an online focus group discussion. Sampling is purposive to parents of adolescents and teachers at secondary school only. Data were analyzed thematically to determine the culturally sensitive SEL constructs for Malaysian adolescents.
RESULTS: All themes and sub-themes of SEC regarded as crucial for Malaysian adolescents are aligned with CASEL's five domains of competencies. Our findings extended the conceptualization of subskills under CASEL's relationship skills and responsible decision-making domains, which reflect Asian cultural values. The main themes of social competency: (a) preserving interpersonal relationships, (b) utilizing intrapersonal skills, and (c) communicating effectively, are shared with the established CASEL constructs. However, the underlying subthemes denote the unique cultural manifestation of social competency in Malaysia. Two of the emotional competency themes represent the established CASEL constructs: (a) practicing self-regulation, (b) demonstrating help-seeking behavior, and the other two themes signify Asian values: (c) upholding altruism, and (d) maintaining cultural display rules.
DISCUSSIONS: This formative study revealed the habitual use of experiential and expressive suppressions as adaptive emotion regulation strategies in Malaysian collectivist culture and offered a potential alternative emotion regulation pathway suitable for Malaysian adolescents. It also informed the feasibility of implementing SEL modules developed based on the CASEL framework in Malaysia and suggested two key lessons to enhance the cultural sensitivity of SEL in Malaysia: effective, respectful communication and expressive writing.
AIM: The study aimed to understand the experiences of parents of children with thalassemia related to their family, financial, social, treatment, and psychological issues in Pakistan.
METHODS: This descriptive phenomenological study recruited 21 parents of children with thalassemia through purposive sampling until data saturation was achieved. Analysis of transcribed interviews was performed through Colaizzi's method and themes and subthemes revolving around diagnosis, challenges, and treatment issues were extracted.
FINDINGS: A total of 21 Pakistani parents participated in this study. Most of the participants were females (n = 16, 76.19%), housewives/stay-at-home moms (n = 13 (61.90%), and were uneducated (n = 6, 28.57%). Regarding genetic traits, only three (14.28%) parents declared that they had genetic traits of thalassemia. The findings of our study revealed that thalassemia is enormously influenced by psychosocial and economic problems because of this disease in their families.
CONCLUSION: Our findings indicated that parents of these children face multi-faceted challenges, such as physical, socio-emotional, financial, and familial. These findings may lead to an adequate understanding of their individual needs and efficient utilization of supportive and care programs.
PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: An understanding of such experiences, involving those distinctive to Pakistani culture, is especially vital to inform the care of these children and enhance their quality of life.
METHODS: This cross-sectional study recruited 553 parents of children aged 13-24 years in low-income community settings. The Parent-Child Conflict scale of the Parental Environment Questionnaire (PEQ) was used to measure parent-child conflict. Psychological distress was assessed using the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale short form (DASS-21).
RESULTS: The study revealed a low level of parent-child conflict in the overall study population, with a median PEQ of 48.0 (interquartile range [IQR] 36 to 48). Concerning demographics, married parents reported a likelihood of having a higher level of parent-child conflict over 3 times higher than single parents (OR = 3.18 95%, CI 1.30-7.75). More parent-child conflicts were also found in parents aged 60-72 years old who were unemployed, retired, or housewives and from lower-income groups. In regard to lifestyle factors, a higher level of physical activity and having enough sleep were associated with lower levels of parent-child conflict. Only approximately 1% of the participants reported symptoms of depression, anxiety, or stress.
DISCUSSION: Low risk exists for parent-child conflict and psychological sequelae following the easing of the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, which could be due to various support measures implemented by the government. Vulnerable parents identified as being at risk of parent-child conflict warrant attention in future advocacy efforts.