Self-assessment of the quality of life of children and adolescents in the child welfare system of Serbia.
OBJECTIVE
Children and adolescents who enter a child welfare system are at higher risk of suffering from mental disorders, physical health, and/or social and educational problems than the general population of the same age is. This study was organized with the aim to evaluate the general characteristics of quality of life (QOL) in children and adolescents living in residential and foster care in Serbia.


METHODS
Two hundred and sixteen children and adolescents, aged 8-18 years, from residential and foster care and 238 children and adolescents from the general population participated in the study. QOL was assessed using the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL) - Serbian version. Three groups were created: residential care group (RCG), foster care group (FCG), and control group (children and adolescents from biological families - CG). Descriptive data were calculated for all questionnaires' scores, while t-test and ANOVA were used to compare them.


RESULTS
The mean value of the total PedsQL was lower in the RCG, 67.47 +/- 17.75, than in the FCG and the CG, 88.33 +/- 11.27 and 80.74 +/- 11.23, respectively. Additionally, the RCG reported lower all PedsQL Scale scores, but the lowest value was for the psychosocial domain. These differences were statistically significant (F value ranged from 17.3 to 49.89, p < 0.000). However, only the scores of the RCG were statistically different from the FCG and the CG, while the differences between the FCG and the CG were statistically insignificant (p > 0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
Children and adolescents living in residential care have significantly poorer QOL than those living in foster care or in biological families. On the other side, QOL in children and adolescents from foster care is similar to the one of those living in biological families.
Department of Psychiatry, Clinic for Neurology and Psychiatry for Children and Youth, Belgrade, Serbia. drmajad@gmail.com
Maja
M
Damnjanović
Aneta
A
Lakić
Dejan
D
Stevanović
Ana
A
Jovanović
Jasna
J
Jancić
Mirjana
M
Jovanović
Ljubica
L
Leposavić
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002669:Child Welfare; D005260:Female; D005581:Foster Home Care; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011788:Quality of Life; D012112:Residential Facilities; D055771:Serbia; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires