To test the 6-month efficacy of an inclusive non-diagnosis-specific, 7-session parent education curriculum on five pre-specified outcomes. A randomized clinical trial with 100 parents having children 2-11 years with a variety of chronic conditions was conducted. The 7-session curriculum, Building on Family Strengths (BFS), was created by an interdisciplinary pediatric team as a derivative of a successful adult chronic disease self-Management program distributed by Stanford University Patient and Education Research Center. Despite no differences at baseline, intervention participants had higher scores on self-efficacy to manage the child's condition (p = 0.049), coping with childhood chronic illness (p< 0.001), parent-child shared management of the condition (p = 0.097), family quality of life (p = 0.010), and, lower scores on a measure of depressive symptoms (p = 0.046) at the 6-month end-point. Average effect-sizes were modest across outcomes (7-11% improvement) with intervention participants having baseline scores in the least favorable quartile improving the most (12-41%). This research provides evidence that the BFS curriculum can yield significant improvements across five important outcomes for parents of children with various chronic conditions. Parent education programs should be offered especially to parents of children with chronic health conditions, regardless of the type of condition, who lack adequate support. These programs can help parents cope with and manage their children's chronic conditions more effectively.

When children have special health care needs, parents assume the roles of care coordinator, medical expert, and systems advocate as well as their typical parenting roles. They face many challenges in managing their child's chronic condition in the context of everyday life. Health care providers are uniquely positioned to assist parents in meeting those challenges and to promote parent competency and confidence in their child's care. The data for this analysis were collected during classes for parents of children with chronic conditions who took part in a randomized controlled study of a curriculum's effectiveness. During facilitated discussions, parents discussed challenges they faced and generated strategies they found helpful. Qualitative data analysis revealed dominant themes across subject areas. Challenges included social isolation, strained relationships and ongoing frustrations with health care and educational systems. Helpful strategies focused on being prepared, connecting with peers, becoming an advocate, developing partnerships and caring for one's self. Implications for health care providers include: understanding common challenges parents face; promoting parent-to-parent connections; and building partnerships with parents and their children with special needs.

Families of children with chronic conditions require quality programs that address the child's needs in the context of daily family life. These programs need to be tested for effectiveness in randomized clinical trials. One such program, Building on Family Strengths, was developed from a familycentered approach with parents of children with special health care needs involved in many aspects of the research project. This article articulates specific ways parents were involved in the project, with particular emphasis on the role of the parent coinvestigator. The driving philosophy of family-centered care and related work of participatory research are discussed as foundational to the process. Challenges, so-lutions, and recommendations for parent involvement in future research of this type are discussed.