Parents of children with food allergy: A qualitative study describing needs and identifying solutions.

BACKGROUND

Parents experience a wide range of emotions, specifically stress and anxiety, when their child receives a diagnosis of a food allergy. Managing this health condition and coping with emotions require professional and peer support. Currently, there is a lack of resources and a lack of awareness of the resources that are required to help assist parents in managing their child's food allergy.

OBJECTIVE

To describe parental experiences when caring for a child with food allergy and to review the resources parents need to manage living with a child with food allergy and more specifically how they would want these resources delivered.

METHODS

A total of 7 semistructured focus groups were conducted in British Columbia, Canada. Parents were asked to describe their experiences with managing their child's food allergy and identify helpful resources.

RESULTS

A total of 40 parents (33 females) participated in the focus groups. Participant demographics were collected. The following 3 main themes emerged: (1) anxiety (an emotional roller coaster); (2) a transformational journey (the waiting game, loss of normalcy, strained relationships and mistrust, and financial challenges); and (3) the need for resources (day to day management, ages and stages, mental health supports, and "the dream").

CONCLUSION

An in-person allied health care team is needed to provide an integrated, patient-centered approach for how families can live and manage food allergies. Credible information and resources, such as medically reviewed websites, support groups, and counseling services, with a goal of reducing child and parental anxiety, should be provided by health care professionals.