Effect of Supportive Care for Mothers on Weight Gain of their Children with Cleft Palate

Cleft palate (CP) or palatoschisis is a congenital incomplete closure of the mouth roof (palate) as a result of the failure of fusion of the palate during embryonic development, failure to detect and diagnose CP early after birth can exacerbate the problem and contribute to weight loss especially in isolated CP. Nursing care must not focus on the children alone, but also involve their mothers and not just given immediately before and after the surgical procedure, but from detection of the CP along with the treatment journey. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the effect of supportive care for mothers on weight gain of their children with CP. Time series quasi -experimental research design was utilized to fit the aim of the current study. The study was conducted in the out-patient clinic at Cairo University Specialized Pediatric Hospital. A purposive sample of 60 mothers of children who diagnosed as isolated CP or associated with repaired cleft lip up to two years old have participated in the study. Data were collected using the following tools: Structured interview questionnaire, Egyptian Growth Curve Chart (EGCC) (2002), Mothers' knowledge assessment sheet, and Mothers' practice assessment checklist. The study results revealed that mothers who received supportive care had a higher mean score of knowledge and improved levels of practice regarding care of their children with CP than those in the control group. Children of mothers who received supportive care had a higher mean of body weight gain than those in the control group. The results also demonstrated that there were statistically significant positive correlations between children' weight gain and total mean score of mothers' knowledge in the immediate post-test and two weeks after surgery. The study results concluded that, the application of supportive care for mothers of children with CP has a positive effect on their children body weight gain.