A survey of contact with offspring and assistance with child care among parents with psychotic disorders

To help improve services for parents with psychotic disorders, patients wit h such disorders in three treatment agencies in Queensland, Australia, were surveyed about whether they were parents, how much contact they had with t heir offspring, and who provided assistance with child care. Of the 342 ind ividuals with psychotic disorders mho participated in the study, 124 were p arents. Forty-eight parents in the study had children under age 16, and 20 of these parents (42 percent) had their children living with them. Most par ents relied on relatives or friends for assistance with child care. Barrier s to child care services identified by parents were inability to pay, lack of local services, and fear of losing custody of children.