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An autism spectrum disorder can result in considerable stress and confusion for parents as they attempt to understand their child's problems and obtain a diagnosis. Few studies have explored the parental experience in the context of Chinese culture. The purpose of this study was to understand the experiences of parents in Taiwan of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. In total, 15 parents, 1 father and 14 mothers, were recruited by purposive sampling. This qualitative study used semi-structured interviews and descriptive phenomenological analysis. The findings indicated that parents of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder underwent five coping experiences during the diagnostic process: (1) uncertainty and difficulty understanding their child's behaviour, which occurred during the pre-diagnosis phase; (2) obligation to obtain professional services; (3) anxious searching for a second opinion, which occurred during the diagnosis phase; (4) acceptance and fortitude and (5) further adjustment during the post-diagnosis phase. Our findings add to our understanding of how parents experience the diagnostic process, which could improve medical professionals' counselling and support for parents at the stage of obtaining a diagnosis for their children.

Autism spectrum disorder has only recently been recognized as a developmental disability in Taiwan. We conducted an exploratory qualitative descriptive study with children (n = 14, mean age = 13.57 years) and their parents to understand stressors experienced by children with autism spectrum disorder in Taiwan. An analysis of face‐to‐face interviews revealed that children with autism spectrum disorder experienced stressors of daily living, which included environmental stimuli, academic and behavioral expectations, deviations in routine, behavioral expectations, and emotional control, and stressors of socializing, which included bullying, communication, personal interactions, conflict resolution, and difficulty understanding others' emotions. Stressors resulted from the core symptoms and characteristic behaviors of autism spectrum disorders, and also Taiwanese cultural expectations. Our findings could help develop individualized educational plans and culturally‐sensitive behavioral interventions. Facilitation of these interventions could be used by nurses and health‐care professionals to help facilitate problem solving and communication skills, which could reduce the stress for children with autism spectrum disorder in Taiwan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tourette syndrome (TS) is a chronic tic disorder that occurs in childhood. Children with TS may have multiple tic incidents during a day, even many times per minute. Such sudden, rapid and short utterings or movements may influence sufferers' ability to perform daily activities and present barriers to normal interaction with others. Anger, depression and low self-esteem are commonly seen in many children with TS. Awareness of TS is not great in Taiwan, and so many pediatric patients fail to obtain an early diagnosis and / or are mistreated or punished due to disorder-related behaviors. Such results in elevated physical, psychological and social stresses for sufferers. In this paper, we briefly introduce TS symptoms, diagnosis, classification, prognosis, co-morbidity, related psycho-social stresses, and common treatments. In order to facilitate the effective management of TS, we provide suggestion for patient families and schools as well as recommendations on how to interact effectively with others. We hope this article is helpful for healthcare workers, patients, families and schools to improve the recognition and management of TS.

Part 1, the current paper describes the development and testing of a quality-of-life (QOL) assessment specifically designed for Taiwanese pediatric cancer patients (7-18 years) and their parents/caregivers. The assessment instrument was established based on a qualitative study, then refined using recognized item-analysis methods and pilot tested on a group of 25 patients. The final assessment instrument included three versions of the same instrument, a patient self-report (QOLCC-7-12, for children aged 7-12 years; QOLCC-ADO for adolescent aged 13-18 years) and a parent proxy-report (QOLCC-PAR). The final seven-subscale tool has a total of 34 items and was tested among 106 young cancer patients and 106 their parents. Psychometric properties of the measure were tested using item analysis, Cronbach's alpha, and a confirmatory factor analysis. Results suggest acceptable reliability and goodness of fit of this seven-scale measure. In order to test the factor validity of QOLCC, an independent group of 42 children with cancer participated. The results of confirmatory factor analysis shows the goodness of fit in QOLCC., (Copyright 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)

The quality of life in childhood cancer (QOLCC) is a research instrument that has been developed to assess the quality of life for children and adolescents who suffer from cancer in Taiwan. The current paper is the second of a two-part series of research reports. Part I is reported in this journal (Yeh et al., 2003). Part II describes the range of measurement, concordance of cross-informants reports, and clinical validity of Taiwanese pediatric cancer children (7-12 years) and adolescents (13-18 years) and their parents/caregivers. Due to the cognitive ability of children and adolescents, data were analyzed for children and adolescent separately. The validity of cross-referenced information between parent and child forms was subsequently examined using Pearson product correlation. The feasibility (percentage of missing values per item) and range of measurement [percentage of minimum (floor effect) and maximum (ceiling effect) possible scores] was calculated for the five QOLCC and the total scale score. The findings of medium to high correlation of the patient/parent responses strongly imply that relevant information might be obtainable through parents when children are unable or unwilling to complete the assessment instrument. Feasibility for the QOLCC was very good., (Copyright 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)