PARENTAL PERCEPTIONS OF PROCEDURE-RELATED DISTRESS AND FAMILY ADAPTATION IN CHILDHOOD LEUKEMIA

Child and parental distress related to lumbar punctures and bone marro w aspirates and general family adaptation are evaluated in a cross-sec tional study of children currently in treatment with leukemia in first remission (N = 70). A parental self-report measure developed for this study-the Perception of Procedures Questionnaire (PPQ)-yielded three factors: (a) parental satisfaction, (b) parental distress or involveme nt, and (c) child distress. Data from the PPQ showed high levels of bo th satisfaction and distress in the context of invasive procedures. Da ta from standardized measures of family adaptation demonstrated a rang e of functioning. Analyses by length of time since diagnosis indicated that parental distress remains stable over the course of treatment. T he data are discussed with respect to the newly developed measure of p arental procedures (the PPQ) and the need for research in this field t hat provides an integration of procedural distress with parent and fam ily perceptions and adjustment.