Coping strategies used by Parents of children with chronic kidney conditions: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

Background: The chronic condition of children negatively affects them and their whole family, causing various psychosocial stresses. Meanwhile, parents use coping strategies to reduce these stresses and adapt to the child's health condition. Therefore, the present study aimed to explain the strategies employed by parents of children with chronic kidney conditions to cope with the child's condition.Methods: This qualitative study was conducted in Shahid Motahari Hospital, Urmia, Iran. In this study a total of 22 parents of children with chronic kidney conditions were recruited using purposive sampling. Data were collected using semi-structured face-to-face interviews, and the concepts were then extracted using content analysis.Results: The theme entitled "Striving for stability" was extracted from the results and consisted of two sub-themes of "Self-management" and "Situation management". The sub-theme of "Self-management" included concepts of "Seeking solace through inculcation" and "Taking refuge in spirituality" and the sub-theme of "Situation management" included concepts of "Striving to learn", "Determination to continue treatment", and "Striving to solve the problem".Conclusion: Awareness of parents' experiences of caring for a child with a chronic kidney condition is of critical importance in meeting the unmet needs of children and their parents and can serve as a guide for other parents. This knowledge can also be important in designing community-based interventions, where parents play a key role in implementing and evaluating the intervention.