title: Coping in parents of children who are chronically ill: strategies for assessment and intervention.
abstract: Estimates indicate that approximately 31% of children are affected by one or more chronic illnesses. Furthermore, caring for a chronically ill child imposes a host of long-term stressors for parents that need to be addressed by sensitive, evidence-based interventions. This article will: (a) review stressors of childhood chronic illness for parents over time; (b) provide a summary of tools that can be used to assess parental coping, (c) delineate important nursing assessments, (d) review interventions that have resulted in improved parental coping outcomes, and (e) describe a theoretical framework that can be used to assess and intervene with parents of chronically ill children.
authors.affiliation: Center for Research and Evidence-Based Practice and Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Program, University of Rochester School of Nursing and School of Medicine & Dentistry, Rochester, New York, USA. bernadette_melnyk@urmc.rochester.edu
authors.forename: B M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Melnyk
authors.forename: N F
authors.initials: NF
authors.lastname: Feinstein
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Moldenhouer
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Small
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D002648:Child; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000451:nursing / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D009730:Nursing Assessment; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D011368:Professional-Family Relations