engleski

Group psychotherapy for parents of children with cochlear implant

During preoperative diagnostic evaluation, surgical procedure of cochlear implantation, and following rehabilitation, the parents of the deaf children need to deal with lots of emotional difficulties. Our goal was to demonstrate and quantificate the difference between their quality of life in comparison to control group of parents of healthy children, and than to show how group psychotherapy can improve it. In this study we used the quality of life evaluation scale consisting of 21 units, the subjects giving self evaluation of the satisfaction with their lives. We tested 60 subjects divided in two groups: 30 parents of cochlear implant users, and 30 parents of healthy children. The groups were equalized in terms of sex, age, material status and employment. Semi structured interview method was used to exclude previous psychopathological symptoms. Results of descriptive statistics and analysis of variance showed significant differences in the test scores (quality of life evaluation scale) between the groups. Arithmetic midpoint of the test score in the group of parents of cochlear implant users was 2, 95 (SD = 0, 13), and in the group of parents of healthy children it was 3, 71 (SD = 0, 25). In the following year supportive-educational psychotherapy in the form of workshops in a middle sized group was organized for the parents of cochlear implant users. After 16 sessions the testing of quality of life with the same scale was redone for that group, and it showed the improvement of the score that became close to the results of the group of the parents of healthy children: after the treatment the arithmetic midpoint of the test score was 3, 4 (SD = 0, 4). It is obvious that the parents of cochlear implant users feel less satisfied with the quality of their lives. There is a need for organized supportive educational work, which is probably most effective in a form of group psychotherapy that can significantly improve their satisfaction.

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