Child diabetes – parents’ experience Barndiabetes - föräldrars upplevelser

Background: Diabetes Mellitus Type 1 is increasing among children on large parts of the world. The disease strikes not only the child but affects the whole family. The parents are those who are responsible for the child’s treatment and well being. Purpose: The purpose of the literature review was to describe how parents to children with Diabetes Mellitus Type 1 experience and handle the situation around the child’s disease. Method: A literature review has been done using scientific articles. The articles were reviewed and analysed and five themes emerged. Result: Many parents experienced a constant fear for hypoglycaemia witch resulted in psychic stress. The result showed that the younger the child was when diagnosed the more stressed and worried the parents were. Precise and satisfactory information about the child’s disease was appreciated by the parents and made the coping with the disease easier. Conclusion: It is important that the nurse find out about the parents experiences and coping strategies in order to be able to give them a good care. In this way the nurse can try to support the parents and give them essential information about the disease so the parents can give confidence to the sick child