Parents perception of cerebral palsy child after confirming the diagnosis

Abstract

Purpose: Cerebral palsy is a common condition in Bangladesh which causes childhood disability. In most cases the parents are the primary caregiver for their child with cerebral palsy. Parents face many problems when caring her child and cope as best as they can. Objectives: To identify the parents perception of the cerebral palsy child. The objectives of the study is to find out the parents perception of the cerebral palsy child after confirming the diagnosis. Methodology: Qualitative methodology was used to conduct this study. Participants for this study were the parents of children with cerebral palsy who are taking treatment in CRP. For data collection 14 parents were purposively selected and in-depth interview was conducted with a semi-structured open-ended questionnaire. Then the data was analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Results: The parents interviewed reported that parent’s perception of cerebral palsy child. Communication with parents who are confirming the diagnosis of their child’s that their child are affected by cerebral palsy. So, it is a difficult task for professionals. Parents are experiencing great emotional stress during the diagnostic process and dissatisfaction with disclosure is widespread. The aim of this study was to investigate parents’ perceptions when realizing their child’s disability, the impact of the diagnosis and find out the perception of parent’s social life, relationship status, physical health condition and economical status. Key Words: Cerebral palsy, Quality of life, Perception.