Wellbeing of parents raising the children with autism spectrum disorder and the role of psychologists

Introduction Recent research show the rise of the prevalence of the autism spectrum disorder (ASD) worldwide. At the same time, care for ASD children was found to affect the psychological health of parents or guardians of ASD children. The aim was to identify the wellbeing of parents raising the ASD children and to explore the experiences of primary care (PHC) psychologists in providing support to them. Material and methods We conducted a cross-sectional study. Parents of ASD children took part in the survey. Wellbeing was assessed using Parental Well-Being Scale including physical and emotional health, stress, social support, and quality of life. Ten primary care psychologists were also interviewed. Results 327 parents of ASD children participated in our study. Mean wellbeing score for all parents was 52.6±15.65 pts. The highest aspect of wellbeing was enjoyment in looking after child (mean 7.29 pts) and quality of life (mean 6.87 pts). The strongest predictor of parental wellbeing was presence of disability diagnosis for ASD child related (6.33 pts), lower parental wellbeing (Beta=0.20, p<0.001). The interview results show the insufficient competence of psychologists to work with parents of children with ASD. Conclusions On the parental well-being scale, the highest scores are observed for enjoyment in looking after child and quality of life. Insufficient work is carried out by PHC psychologists with parents of children with ASD. There is a need for future training of psychologists in the management of children with ASD and their parents