Table 1.
Inclusion and exclusion criteria applied to the literature search.
| Inclusion criteria | Exclusion criteria |
|---|---|
| Mothers were aged 18 years or above, Children with CP were aged between 0-18 years | |
| Qualitative studies focus on: | |
| Psychological, physical, social challenges faced by mothers of children with CP. | Other caregivers’ and health personnel’s experience of the mother role |
| Mothers’ experiences from first learning of the diagnosis to the whole caring process. | Review articles, official reports, book reviews, theoretical articles, dissertations, conference abstracts, and editorials |
| Mothers’ change and growth in the caring experience. |
Figure 1.
Search strategies for PubMed.
Figure 2.
Flow diagram for selection process.
Note: CINAHL, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature; CP, cerebral palsy.
Table 2.
Characteristics of included studies.
| Author/year | Location of study | Aim | Sample | Data methods | Core finding | Quality appraisal (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vadivelan et al.15 | Tertiary Care Center, Tamil Nadu | To understand the physical, psychosocial, financial, and other stressors among caregivers of children with CP | 10 mothers of children with CP | Thematic content analysis, semi-structured interview | 5 main themes
| 80 |
| Mokhtari and Abootora.16 | Saba Private Rehabilitation Center, Lran | To investigate the experiences of Iranian mothers of children suffering from CP | 8 mothers of children with CP | Hermeneutic phenomenology, semi-structured interviews | 4 main themes
| 60 |
| Marian et al.17 | Hospital, Namibia | To reveal the experience of mothers of children born with CP | 12 mothers of children with CP | Phenomenological, explorative and contextual design, Indepth interviews | 4 main themes
| 60 |
| Mohamed Madi and Mandy.18 | Medical City, Saudi Arabia | To explore the perceptions of disability among mothers of children with CP | 6 mothers of children with CP | Ethnographic, focus groups | 3 main themes
| 60 |
| Kurtuncu et al.19 | Rehabilitation Center, Turkey | To determine the difficulties experienced by mothers of children with CP and their needs | 15 mothers of children with CP | Phenomenological approach, semi-structured interviews | 9 main themes
| 60 |
| Dalvand et al.20 | Participants’ homes/clinics/school/community, Iran | To explore occupations of mothers of children with CP | 16 mothers of children with CP | Content analysis methodology, semi-structured interviews | 4 main themes
| 60 |
| Dehghan et al.21 | Clinics, Iran | To explore the experience of social participation of mothers of children with CP | 14 mothers of children with CP | Content analysis method, semi-structured interviews. | 3 main themes
| 60 |
| Glasscock.22 | Clinics, USA | To describe the lived experience of being the mother of a child with CP | 15 mothers of children with CP | Phenomenological methods, audiotaped interviews. | 4 main themes
| 70 |
| Huang et al.23 | Hospital, Taiwan, China | To describe challenging caregiving experiences for mothers providing care for children with CP | 15 mothers of children with CP | Hermeneutic phenomenological approach, in-depth interviews and journaling methods | 4 main themes
| 80 |
| Singogo et al.24 | Townships, Zambia. | To explore the challenges of mothers who cared for children with CP | 16 mothers of children with CP | Exploratory methodology, semi-structured individual interviews. | 5 main themes
| 70 |
| Milbrath et al.25 | Care Institution, Brazil | To get to know the adaptation process experienced by a woman, motivated by the birth of a child with CP | 6 mothers of children with CP | Descriptive and exploratory methodology, semi-structured interview. | 2 main themes
| 50 |
| Power et al.26 | Clinic, Irish | To study the effect of the child’s communication difficulties on the mother’s life | 3 mothers of children with CP | Grounded theory, semi-structured interview. | 5 main themes
| 60 |
| Huang et al.27 | Hospital, Taiwan, China | To describe mothers’ experience of learning that their child has been diagnosed with CP | 15 mothers of children with CP | Phenomenological methodology, in-depth interviews and journaling methods. | 4 main themes
| 80 |
Table 3.
Themes and subthemes.
| Themes | Subthemes |
|---|---|
| Negative emotions | Shock and denial Guilt and blame Worry and sadness Anxious and uncertain Unfair for children Dilemma Helplessness |
| Burden and challenges | Physical challenges Financial burden Limited social participation Career choices |
| Social support | Family support Marital problems Social support Education problems Social discrimination Environment challenges |
| Actively growing and expectation | Self-regulation Return to society Accept and release Coordination and investment |