Parental coping in raising children who have spina bifida cystica.

In this study of 40 married couples who are rising a child with spina bifida cystica, the family stress theory was used to assess family regenerative power and vulnerability to stress. The reserach tested for differences between high and low stress families in the family environment, coping strategies, and severity of the child's problem. When compared with the high stress families, the low stress families appeared to be more cohesive, be better organised, have a more active recreation orientation, be lower in family conflict, utilise more family community relationships, and have children who have less severe physical problems. The practical implications of this study include the potentiality for applied usage of family diagnostic tests, the clinical and research application of the findings on family coping strategies for improved patient outcomes, and the need for additional social-medical research to assess accurately family concerns about health care policies.