Evaluation of Mothers' Self-efficacy in Caring of Children with Asthma Referred to the Subspecialty Clinic and Ardabil Educational-Medical Center of BuAli in 2018

Background & aim: Asthma is one of the most common chronic diseases of childhood and the first reason for children admitting to the emergency room. Mothers play an essential role in the recovery of a child with asthma and their high self-efficacy is associated with improving and controlling asthma symptoms. The aim of this study was to determine the self-efficacy of mothers in caring of children with asthma referred to the subspecialty clinic and Ardabil educational-medical center of BuAli. Methods: This descriptive-analytical study was performed on 266 mothers with 6-11 years children with asthma, who referred to BuAli Center and the subspecialty clinic of Ardabil University of Medical Sciences. Samples were selected by available sampling method. Data collection tools were a two-part questionnaire including demographic characteristics and motherschr('39') self-efficacy questionnaire. Data were analyzed using SPSS18 statistical software and descriptive (mean and standard deviation) and analytical (Chi-square and Pearson test) statistics. Results: The results showed that 51.9% (138) of mothers had good self-efficacy. Also, motherschr('39') self-efficacy had a statistically significant relationship with the level of education, occupation, source of maternal training, medical history and number of hospitalizations of the child (p<0.001). Conclusion: The findings of the study showed that only about half of mothers with children with asthma have good self-efficacy. Therefore, it is necessary for decision makers of the countrychr('39')s health care system to take the necessary measures to strengthen and improve the self-efficacy of these mothers.