Mothers' perspectives of physical and psychological issues associated with caring for Ghanaian children living with tuberculosis: A qualitative study.
Eric Tornu, Gladys Dzansi, Donna M Wilson and 2 others
PMID 36479915WHAT IT FOUND
Mothers caring for children with TB in Ghana described tiredness, sleeplessness, body pains, weight loss, illness, fear, guilt, worry and stigma.
The burden fell on the mother, not only the child.
Key findings
01Mothers reported physical burdens of tiredness, sleeplessness, body pains, weight loss and illness.
02Mothers reported psychological burdens of thinking and worrying and negative emotions.
03Mothers reported that they and their children were stigmatized.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study included only 15 mothers, each caring for one child with TB, in two hospitals in urban Accra, so it may not reflect rural settings, other caregivers or other countries. It describes experiences and themes, not how common they are, and it did not test whether support or counselling reduces burden. Transcripts were not returned to participants for corrections, although the interviewer summarised responses during the interview. Physical and psychological issues were described from interviews, so the study cannot show that caregiving caused the mothers' illnesses.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflict of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that assessing or counselling mothers will reduce their burden. This qualitative study described what mothers reported; it did not test an intervention.