Long-time sickness absence among parents of pre-school children with cerebral palsy, spina bifida and down syndrome: a longitudinal study

Abstract

BackgroundTaking care of a child with special needs can be draining and difficult and require a lot of parental time and resources. The present study investigated the long-term sickness absence of parents who have children with spina bifida, cerebral palsy and Down syndrome compared to that of parents without a child with special needs.MethodsThe sample consisted of primiparae women who gave birth between 2001 and 2005 and the fathers of the children (N = 202,593). Data were obtained from the Medical Birth Registry of Norway (MBRN), which is linked to the Central Population Register, education and income registries and Historical Event Database (FD-Trygd) of Statistics Norway (SSB). The linkage data provide longitudinal data, together with annual updates on children and their parents. Statistical analyses were performed using difference-in-difference (DD) study design.ResultsCaring for a child with special needs affected maternal sickness absence, particularly in the first year after the birth. The level of sickness absence of mothers caring for a child with spina bifida and cerebral palsy was greater than that of mothers caring for a child with Down syndrome. In contrast, the sickness absence of fathers caring for a child with special needs was, on average, comparable to that of fathers without a special-needs child in the post-birth period.ConclusionsCaring for a child with special needs affected the long-term sickness absence of mothers but not fathers. The findings indicate that the burden of care in the case of children with special needs falls especially on the mother.

Parental Distress and Stress in Association with Health-Related Quality of Life in Youth with Spina Bifida: A Longitudinal Study

“…1 Further, research has shown that mothers of youth with SB are more likely than fathers to take on the role of managing their child’s medical regimen. 30 Therefore, younger children may be impacted more significantly by maternal SB-specific parenting stress.…”

Parental Perceptions of Child Vulnerability in Families of Youth With Spina Bifida: the Role of Parental Distress and Parenting Stress

“…Additionally, fathers of children with more severe conditions perceived their child as being more vulnerable. Research has shown that, in two-parent households, mothers of youth with SB are more likely to take on the role as the child's primary medical caregiver, while fathers are more likely to take on the role of financial providers for the family (Brekke, Fruh, Kvarme, & Holmstrom, 2017). As such, fathers may spend less time and share fewer experiences with their child than do mothers, therefore experiencing fewer positive experiences with their child.…”

From Feeling Broken to Looking Beyond Broken: Palestinian Mothers’ Experiences of Having a Child With Spina Bifida

“…Research has emphasized divergent forms of burden and other predictors of these outcomes including marital quality, economic burden, and psychosocial maladjustment related to high levels of stress (Bannink, van Hove, & Irdro, 2016; Dodgson et al, 2000; Grosse, Flores, Ouyang, Robbins, & Tilford, 2009; Limiñana Gras, Corbalán Berná, & Sánchez López, 2009). Furthermore, it has been found that the burden of care falls particularly on the mother (Brekke, Früh, Kvarme, & Holmstrøm, 2017), and mothers report an increase in depression and anxiety (Civilibal, Suman, Elevli, & Duru, 2014).…”