Stress and burden among parents of students in special schools of Mangaluru: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background: About 15% of the world's population lives with some form of disability; 2%–4% experience significant difficulties in functioning. Parents who are the primary caregivers of a child with a disability face numerous challenges in day-to-day life, which, in turn, affects their psychological health. Objectives: This study was conducted to determine the level of stress and burden among parents of a child with a disability, to identify the coping strategies used by the parents, and to assess the effect of sociodemographic variables on their level of stress and burden. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in three special schools of Mangaluru taluk; a total of 112 parents whose children were enrolled in these special schools participated. Family Stress and Coping Interview and Zarit Burden Interview scale and a modified questionnaire on coping strategies were used to calculate the stress and burden level. Results: Nearly 47.33% of the parents reported mild-to-moderate stress, whereas 25% of the parents reported high stress, 50.9% of the parents reported mild-to-moderate burden, and 26.8% accounted for moderate-to-severe burden. There was a significant association between the level of stress, level of caregiver burden, and sociodemographic variables such as residents, occupation, education, and rehabilitation services. There is moderate and strong evidence of a positive correlation between the caregiver burden with the age of the child (r = 0.245, P = 0.009) and stress (r = 0.45, P < 0.001). The parents of children with disability undergo stressful events throughout their life; the sociodemographic factors have significant association on the level of stress and burden. Conclusion: The various program measures such as adult day care, improvised home-care, and use of assistive equipment can be undertaken to reduce caregiver burden.

Keywords

• caregiver burden
• coping strategies
• disability
• parents
• special school
• stress