The Costs of Caring for a Child with an Autism Spectrum Disorder - Essay Example

The Costs of Caring for a Child with an Autism Spectrum Disorder The Costs of Caring for a Child with an Autism Spectrum Disorder Introduction The article "The Costs of Caring for a Child with an Autism Spectrum Disorder" dwells on the experience of caregivers of young ones affected by autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Autism is a condition characterized by challenging development disabilities. A child diagnosed with the condition is typified by antisocial behavior, inability to express one’s emotion and communication challenges. With the afore-mentioned problems, there is a huge burden that caregivers face when caring for children with disabilities like ASDs. The article seeks to analyze the caregivers’ experiences as a result of the burden or stress that comes with children with disabilities. Discussion Analysis A child’s diagnosis with ASD is predicated to have far-reaching consequences to a caregiver as well as the entire family. In numerous studies about such a condition, costs associated with care giving have been significantly substantiated as ASD diagnosis brings forth financial situations that families struggle to maintain. In the article, caregivers converse about the situations they undergo in their daily routines. According to Fletcher, Markoulakis & Bryden (2012), expenses including special diets, childcare, treatment costs, repairing homes, private lessons among other factors were discussed as financial costs that families incur. Consequently, with the significant finances required when dealing with the condition, numerous families fail to provide the required care due to the lack of financial resources. Some caregivers mentioned that their families failed to plan vacations, renovate households and lacked funds for their children’s future educational pursuits as a result. As reported in a study conducted by Jarbrink et al. in 2003, out-of-pocket expenses and the need for informal and formal services contribute to financial strain for parents. Consequently, caregivers lamented on the impact of the condition on their employment or their partner’s. This is because parents took time off work quite often. Due to the responsibility and obligation of taking care of their children including medical appointments, tend to quit their employment altogether. Some mothers revealed that they worked full time to organize for additional funds. Even though the level of the condition’s impact is immense on mothers, further research reveals that the employment of fathers was also affected (Fletcher, Markoulakis & Bryden, 2012). Due to the diagnosis of a child’s condition, the health of a mother is also compromised. The article reveals a variety of conditions that affect mothers including weight gain, depression, increased stress, and exhaustion among others, as they tend to prioritize their children’s health above theirs. Findings form existing literature substantiates negative outcomes among individual families with disabilities such as ASDs, especially increased stress and depression (Fletcher, Markoulakis & Bryden, 2012). The authors argue that, even though there is a myriad of health conditions characterizing these families, some can be prevented as well as managed through the help of health experts. With financial strains affecting caregivers increasing, immense responsibility is placed on the families to continue providing for their loved ones. In reference to the article, much of these obligations are generally placed on mothers, as women are an integral part of the child’s care. Hence, health care professionals should provide support for families with children diagnosed with autism, especially mothers with the tendency of neglecting their own health (Fletcher, Markoulakis & Bryden, 2012). Due to the obligations placed on parents, the article reports that the social lives of caregivers are under immense strain. Respondents revealed a variety of outcomes as soon as their children are diagnosed with autism including strained relationships, loss of relatives and friends, social and stigma associated with autism. Consequently, families are unable to attend social gatherings and vacations. These issues are as a result of the child’s condition. Additionally, most respondents reported stigmatization due to the condition especially in public places with many onlookers who are unaware of the child’s disability being judgmental as they assume the disability is an outcome of poor parenting. Stigma is also reported from relatives within the family’s inner circle due to the illness, particularly when the affected child behaves inappropriately. The situation becomes complex when family members fail to ask about the condition, forcing families to isolate themselves from social gatherings in order to avoid embarrassment. With ASD affecting the entire family, caregivers often feel that siblings are deprived of a normal family setting due to loss of family outings and vacations (Fletcher, Markoulakis & Bryden, 2012). Implications Practice implications The article is an invaluable tool to the medical realm as it offers knowledge on how the condition not only affects the children with autism but the entire family. This is because health professional need to assist caregivers who are affected by the responsibility associated with condition. The amount of insight provided in the article may help future studies while also acting as a benchmark for further research. The realm of nursing, research and practice can utilize the information endowed by the qualitative research to help families cope with the obligation associated with condition. The care that comes with a child’s diagnosis with autism is a lengthy and lifelong endeavor and thus families need necessary resources in the coping and management of such disabilities. Education Implications Generally, most patients and their families tend to face various challenges including lack of perceived risks and independence loss after the patient’s diagnosis. In this case, there is need for education implication and the adaptation of educational methods for the patient’s sake. Alternatively, incorporation of values and educational efforts is also important. Building of values, educational efforts and preferences in this case would include providing health advices, offering the patients and their families counseling and delivering public education programs. Educational programs would have various benefits to the patients including cognitive screening benefits such as problem detention at the earliest stage possible. Research Implications In recent years, numerous research studies have had a tendency of analyzing Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and thus less focus has been directed on the effect and experiences of mothers and members of the families. Conclusion ASD diagnosis has been found to significantly affect caregivers and families. The effects range from compromised social relations for the afflicted children as the lack friends and social stigma that typifies the condition itself. The effects spread across the household, as a family is affected financially due to expenses associated with the disease are immense. Relationships and daily activities of families such as marital relationships and employment are distressed as the child’s obligations consume time as well as financial resources. In reference to the article, various limitations can be highlighted for further investigations in future studies. The women respondents targeted by the proponents are married and thus lack the ability to provide a vital analysis from a single parent perspective. Consequently, other family members like fathers can also provide a different experience, which is invaluable to the study. Therefore, the views of a single parent may prove to be beneficial. Additionally, it is necessary to point out that the study is vital to the realm of medicine from a caregiver’s perspective as it provides an insight that few researchers have cared to analyze in the recent past. Reference Fletcher, P. C., Markoulakis, R., & Bryden,P. J. (2012). The costs of caring for a child with an autism spectrum disorder. Issues in Comprehensive Pediatric Nursing. 35, 45–69. Read More