TY - JOUR
T1 - A predictive model of Health Related Quality of life of parents of chronically ill children
T2 - The importance of care-dependency of their child and their support system
AU - Hatzmann, Janneke
AU - Maurice-Stam, Heleen
AU - Heymans, Hugo S.A.
AU - Grootenhuis, Martha A.
N1 - Funding Information:
The present study was partly funded by the Dutch Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment.
PY - 2009/7/28
Y1 - 2009/7/28
N2 - Background: Parents of chronically ill children are at risk for a lower Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL). Insight in the dynamics of factors influencing parental HRQoL is necessary for development of interventions. Aim of the present study was to explore the influence of demographic and disease related factors on parental HRQoL, mediated by employment, income, leisure time, holiday and emotional support in a comprehensive model. Methods: In a cross-sectional design, 543 parents of chronically ill children completed questionnaires. A conceptual model of parental HRQoL was developed. Structural equation modeling was performed to explore the relations in the conceptual model, and to test if the model fitted the data. Results: The model fitted the data closely (CHISQ(14) = 11.37, p= 0.66; RMSEA = 0.0, 90%CI [0.00;0.034]. The effect of socio-demographic and medical data on HRQoL was mediated by days on holiday (MCS: β = .21) and emotional support (PCS: β = .14; MCS: β = .28). Also, female gender (β = -.10), age (β = .10), being chronically ill as a parent (β = -.34), and care dependency of the child (β = -.14; β = -.15) were directly related to parental HRQoL. Conclusion: The final model was slightly different from the conceptual model. Main factors explaining parental HRQoL seemed to be emotional support, care dependency, days on holiday and being chronically ill as a parent. Holiday and emotional support mediated the effect of demographic and disease-related factors on HRQoL. Hours of employment, leisure time and household income did not mediate between background characteristics and HRQoL, contrasting the hypotheses.
AB - Background: Parents of chronically ill children are at risk for a lower Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL). Insight in the dynamics of factors influencing parental HRQoL is necessary for development of interventions. Aim of the present study was to explore the influence of demographic and disease related factors on parental HRQoL, mediated by employment, income, leisure time, holiday and emotional support in a comprehensive model. Methods: In a cross-sectional design, 543 parents of chronically ill children completed questionnaires. A conceptual model of parental HRQoL was developed. Structural equation modeling was performed to explore the relations in the conceptual model, and to test if the model fitted the data. Results: The model fitted the data closely (CHISQ(14) = 11.37, p= 0.66; RMSEA = 0.0, 90%CI [0.00;0.034]. The effect of socio-demographic and medical data on HRQoL was mediated by days on holiday (MCS: β = .21) and emotional support (PCS: β = .14; MCS: β = .28). Also, female gender (β = -.10), age (β = .10), being chronically ill as a parent (β = -.34), and care dependency of the child (β = -.14; β = -.15) were directly related to parental HRQoL. Conclusion: The final model was slightly different from the conceptual model. Main factors explaining parental HRQoL seemed to be emotional support, care dependency, days on holiday and being chronically ill as a parent. Holiday and emotional support mediated the effect of demographic and disease-related factors on HRQoL. Hours of employment, leisure time and household income did not mediate between background characteristics and HRQoL, contrasting the hypotheses.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=69549129490&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1186/1477-7525-7-72
DO - 10.1186/1477-7525-7-72
M3 - Article
C2 - 19638197
AN - SCOPUS:69549129490
SN - 1477-7525
VL - 7
JO - Health and Quality of Life Outcomes
JF - Health and Quality of Life Outcomes
M1 - 72
ER -