Parents' perceptions of the services provided to children with cerebral palsy in the transition from preschool rehabilitation to school‐based services
Child Care Health and Development
Published online on April 26, 2016
Abstract
Aim
To describe the course of parents' perceptions of the family centredness of rehabilitation services provided to their children with cerebral palsy (CP) before and after the transition from preschool to school‐based services.
Background
Parents of 59 children with CP aged 2.5 to 4.5 years filled in the 56‐item Measure of Processes of Care (MPOC‐56) on three occasions pre (2) and post (1) transition to school‐based services. Friedman tests were used to describe changes in parents' perceptions over time. Mann–Whitney U tests were used to describe differences in course of parents' perceptions between regular school and special school or day care.
Results
Parents' perceptions of preschool services were stable between the ages of 2.5 and 3.5 years, with a decline after transition on four of the five domains of the MPOC (P < 0.05). The domain providing general information was scored lowest (median at baseline 3.56, IQR 2.39) compared with the four other MPOC domains, but remained stable over time. No differences in course of parental perceptions were found for school type.
Conclusion
The transition from preschool to school‐based services for children with CP is associated with a decrease in parents' perception of family centredness independent of the type of school. The transition in services has a negative impact on perceived family‐centred practices.