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Parents of children with physical disabilities – perceived health in parents related to the child's sleep problems and need for attention at night
- Authors:
- MORELIUS E., HEMMINGSSON Helena
- Journal article citation:
- Child: Care, Health and Development, 40(3), 2014, pp.412-418.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Background: Approximately half of all children with moderate to severe physical disabilities have persistent sleep problems and many of these children need parental attention at night. Aim: To study whether sleep problems and need for night-time attention among children with physical disabilities are associated with perceived parental health, headache, psychological exhaustion, pain due to heavy lifting, night-time wakefulness and disrupted sleep. Methods: The authors asked parents of 377 children with physical disabilities aged 1–16 years to complete a questionnaire about their own health. The children all lived at home with both parents. Results: Both parents reported poor health, psychological exhaustion, more night-time wakefulness and disrupted sleep when the child had sleep problems (P < 0.05). Mothers also reported more headache when the child had sleep problems (P = 0.001). Both parents reported more night-time wakefulness and disrupted sleep when the child needed night-time attention (P < 0.01). In general, mothers reported significantly poorer health, more night-time wakefulness, disrupted sleep, headache and psychological exhaustion than fathers (P < 0.001). Conclusions: Sleep problems need to be acknowledged within the paediatric setting in order to prevent psychological exhaustion and poor health in mothers and fathers of children with physical disabilities. (Edited publisher abstract)
School participation of pupils with physical and psychosocial limitations: a comparison
- Authors:
- EGILSON Snaefridur, HEMMINGSSON Helena
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 72(4), April 2009, pp.144-152.
- Publisher:
- Sage
Several features in the school environment affect pupils with disabilities, serving as either supports or barriers to their school participation. This Icelandic study investigated differences in the pupil-environment fit of students with physical and psychosocial limitations, using the School Setting Interview (SSI). The SSI is a client-centred instrument, which focuses on school activities where adjustments need to be made to accommodate pupils with disabilities and to enable their participation. Descriptive statistics and Mann-Whitney U tests were employed to compare the fit of the two groups and their school environment. The results reveal that, in order to participate actively, both groups of pupils required adjustments to many school settings. Pupils with physical limitations frequently need adjustments, but their needs were met by the schools to a more satisfactory extent than were the needs of pupils with psychosocial limitations. The findings support the usability of the SSI for pupils with various types of limitations. They also stress the importance of eliciting the perspectives of the pupils themselves in order to facilitate the planning and implementation of client-centred occupational therapy interventions in school.
Students with disabilities participating in mainstream schools: policies that promote and limit teacher and therapist cooperation
- Authors:
- HEMMINGSSON Helena, GUSTAVSSON Anders, TOWNSEND Elizabeth
- Journal article citation:
- Disability and Society, 22(4), June 2007, pp.383-398.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
This paper examines participatory arrangements for students with physical disabilities in mainstream education, cooperation between teachers and therapists to ensure that these arrangements are efficient and the organizational prerequisites for such cooperation. The study comprises data obtained from 14 'groups' in Sweden, with each group consisting of a student with physical disabilities aged 9-19 years, their main teacher and the relevant therapists from the local habilitation centre. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, field observations and a review of relevant documents, including legislation. The results reveal a lack of cooperation between teacher and therapist which results in students with disabilities receiving suboptimal participatory arrangements in school. Differences in the perspectives of the teachers and therapists and in the way they act and perceive their responsibilities were anchored in institutional and societal documents and the distribution of resources. The implications for students with disabilities are discussed.