Abstract
BackgroundChildren with intellectual disabilities are common and are increasing in number as more children survive globally. In stark contrast to the 1–3% prevalence of intellectual disability in children globally (reported by WHO), studies from Malawi provide alarmingly high rates (26%). We know that the prevalence of psychological distress is as high as 50% in parents of children with intellectual disabilities in Europe and the US. No such studies have yet been conducted in Africa. This study is aimed at determining the prevalence and risk factors for psychological distress among parents of intellectually disabled children in Malawi.MethodsThis quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted in January and February 2015. One hundred and seventy mothers and fathers of children with intellectual disabilities as diagnosed by psychiatric clinical officers were randomly sampled from two selected child disability clinics. The Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ) was used “as measure for psychological distress and questions on socio-demographic variables were administered to all consenting participants.” Data was coded, cleaned and analyzed using STATA.Results70/170 (41.2%) of parents of children with intellectual disabilities reported psychological distress. Univariate and multivariate analysis showed that area of residence (P < 0.05), low socio-economic status (P < 0.05), knowledge of the disability of one’s child (P < 0.05), low confidence in managing the disabled child (P < 0.05), increased perceived burden of care (P = 0.05), and having no sources for psychological support (P < 0.05) significantly predicted psychological distress among the parents for children with disabilities.ConclusionThere is huge burden of psychological distress among parents of intellectually disabled children in Malawi. Psychosocial interventions are urgently needed to support parents of children with intellectual disability in Malawi.
Highlights
Children with intellectual disabilities are common and are increasing in number as more children survive globally
This paper describes the prevalence and factors associated with psychological distress among parents of intellectually disabled children attending disability clinics in Malawi, a low income country
Socio-demographic features 47.3% (88) of parents were from Lilongwe while the rest were from Mzuzu
Summary
Children with intellectual disabilities are common and are increasing in number as more children survive globally. We know that the prevalence of psychological distress is as high as 50% in parents of children with intellectual disabilities in Europe and the US No such studies have yet been conducted in Africa. Some studies have been conducted in Low and Middle Income Countries Parenting such children may lead to difficulties with family functioning, parenting stress, and different parenting style compared to parenting
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