Depression, anxiety and stress in parents of children with disabilities in BANGLADESH

Abstract

The overall wellbeing of children with disabilities is greatly influenced by parental mental health. The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence and the severity of depression, anxiety and stress among the parents of children with disabilities in Bangladesh, and to investigate the socio demographic factors associated with them. A cross sectional study design was used to collect data from 220 parents at CRP-Savar using the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21). Results indicated that 43.6% of parents had extremely severe anxiety, 43.2% extremely severe depression, and 61.8% severe stress. Significantly more extreme anxiety (62.3%) and extreme depression (63.1%) was observed among female parents as compared to males. The greatest prevalence of extremely severe anxiety (52.9%) and depression (48.6%) was found among families in the lowest income range (10,000–20,000 BDT), which emerged as a major factor of financial strain. The results indicate an urgent requirement for targeted mental health interventions, financial support systems, and culturally appropriate family centered care programs. Addressing these multisystem challenges necessitated joint efforts of healthcare professionals, policymakers and community organizations to engineer resilience and longer lasting support structures for affected families. Keywords: Bangladesh, Depression, Anxiety, Stress, Parents, Children with Disabilities.