Parental perceptions and support strategies in caring for a child with a chronic condition.

The purpose of this article is to compare fathers' and mothers' perceptions of a child's chronic condition and to compare strategies used by fathers and mothers to support themselves during critical times. Analysis of data focused on questionnaires from 38 fathers and mothers (19 paired parents) who had children with chronic conditions. Results showed that, although parental perceptions of the child's chronic condition were similar, their responses to the situation were not the same. Fathers and mothers relied on different strategies to support themselves during critical times.