EXPERIENCES AND NEEDS OF PARENTS CARING FOR CHILDREN WITH CEREBRAL PALSY : A META-SYNTHESIS

Abstract

Background Cerebral palsy (CP) is the most common neuro-muscular condition amongst paediatric patients that affects posture and movement. The disease burden of this condition is well documented to heavily fall in the hands of caregivers. This results in difficulties and stress that could inadvertently lead to the standard of care of these children being compromised and quality of life of individuals in the household to be negatively affected. It is thus imperative that healthcare professionals address the needs of both the child with CP and their parental units. Considering the centrality and gravity of the parents’ role in the child’s developmental trajectory, there is a clear need to better understand their experiences and needs. Existing literature reveals ample evidence, compiled quantitatively. However, no qualitative synthesis on this topic has been performed till date. Objective To conduct an in-depth synthesis of the experiences and needs of parents who are caring/have cared for children with CP within the paediatric population. Design A systematic review of qualitative studies and meta-synthesis will be conducted. Method A comprehensive search of English language studies was carried out in six electronic databases (PubMed, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Scopus, EmBASE, ProQuest) from their respective dates of inception until the period of access. CASP will be used to assess the quality Significance of study Findings of this review contribute insight into the true experiences and needs of parents caring for children with CP and aide clinicians in developing family-unit centred care pathways for these patients.