A child with chronic illness and the process of family adaptation.

This article analyzes the concept of family adaptation to a child with chronic illness according to the Wilson method. This concept is viewed developmentally as a continual process of adjustment and change by a family system with a resultant response found across a continuum from optimal to ineffective adaptation. In a developmental context, the family system is viewed from a health-oriented rather than a pathological perspective. The focus is on the family's ability to address the stressful chronic illness situation rather than centering on maladaptation of the family and subsequent treatment.