PERCEPTION OF THE IMPACT OF A CHILDS CHRONIC ILLNESS - DOES IT PREDICT MATERNAL MENTAL-HEALTH

Longitudinal data were used to investigate direct and indirect effects of demographic factors, parameters of chronic health conditions, serv ice use variables, and perception of family impact of illness on menta l health of 169 mothers of children with diverse chronic health condit ions. Bivariate analyses indicated that baseline assessments of demogr aphic factors, condition parameters, and service use were: (1) general ly unrelated to maternal mental health at 1 year and (2) modestly rela ted to maternal perception of the condition's impact on the family 1 y ear later. Perceived impact and maternal mental health themselves were moderately related. Multivariate analyses indicated that the need to watch for changes in the child's condition, the presence of communicat ion or speech problems, and the number of hospitalizations in the prev ious year predicted maternal perceptions of the impact of the conditio n 1 year later. Mothers perception of impact had a direct effect on mo thers' mental health after accounting for condition parameters. Result s suggest that condition parameters and service use can affect materna l mental health through mothers' perceptions of the impact of the cond ition on family life. Implications for interventions to prevent matern al mental health problems are discussed.