Parental Involvement in the Care of Children Diagnosed with Bronchial Asthma

Background: Asthma is one of the major non-communicable diseases that affects children.There is no cure for asthma but it can be controlled through avoidance of environmental triggers and correct inhaler techniques.Childhood asthma can be managed effectively by the collaborative efforts of healthcare providers, patient and family.Parents play a vital role in managing asthma on a daily basis in the middle childhood. 1, 2 Materials and Methods: A quantitative exploratory approach was adopted for this study.Twenty-five parents of children attending pediatric out-patient department were enrolled in the study.The children were selected using non-probability convenience sampling technique.A semi-structured questionnaire was used to elicit the demographic data of parents and a 3point scale to assess the extent of parental involvement in the care of their asthmatic children.The study focused on the parental involvement in the areas of administration of medications, restriction of activity, dietary changes, prevention of triggers and monitoring and management of the child.Results: Findings related to parental involvement revealed that 52% of children 'Always' knew when and which medications to take, reflecting high medication awareness, while 32% of parents "Never" administer medications or keep records of puffs, showing less involvement in these areas.Activity Restriction: A significant 76% of parents 'Always' restricted their child from playing in water or rain, indicating strong parental caution.Dietary Practices: 68% of parents are 'Always' very particular about their child's diet, indicating high dietary vigilance.Trigger Prevention: The most common trigger prevention method is ensuring the child rests and sleeps before exams (76% always or sometimes).Parental Roles: Mothers are significantly more involved in managing their child's care, with a statistically significant difference in the "Management" variable (P value of 0.013).Time Spent with Child: There is a trend suggesting those spending more time with the child tend to administer medications more frequently, though not statistically significant (P value of 0.095). Conclusion:The data highlights strong parental involvement in medication awareness, dietary vigilance, and activity restriction, with mothers being significantly more involved in managing their child's care.While time spent with the child shows a trend towards more frequent medication administration, it is not statistically significant.