Concept analysis of strengths in children: A case of children with cerebral palsy

28^th International Congress on Nursing Care & Nursing Education

July 08-09, 2019 Osaka, Japan

Chi-Hua Lin

Mackay Junior College of Medicine, Nursing and Management, Taiwan
National Taipei University of Nursing and Health Sciences, Taiwan

Posters & Accepted Abstracts: J Nurs Care

Abstract :

Cerebral Palsy (CP) is the most common physical disability in childhood. As a non-progressive neurological disorder that causes the disruption of the normal development of movement/posture and various complications, CP may not only pose a serious difficulty and challenge for children in learning, also bring their parents and family tension and stress to a different extent. The childrenâ??s mental health service sector has undergone a perspective shift from focusing on deficits to a more optimistic and positive view of child development with a growing interest in the strengths or positive characteristics of individuals. The strengths perspective emphasizes on one's emotional and behavioral skills, creates a sense of personal accomplishment and improves one's ability to cope with adversity and stress. It can help children with cerebral palsy find their abilities and resources and gain the strength to overcome the difficulties facing them. The existing literature indicates that there is no consistency of the strengths perspective in definition and terminology. This study, therefore, adopts the concept analysis proposed by Walker and Avant, by searching the databases in medicine, nursing, psychiatry and education. It can be concluded that definitive features of strengths in children with cerebral palsy: Optimism, hope and positive attitude; enthusiasm and energy; stable mood and perseverance and the courage to face the survivability in adversity. It suggests that the results of concept analysis be used in health care and related issues in children with cerebral palsy, further developing its theory structure and knowledge base in the future.

Biography :

Chi-Hua Lin is currently working as a Lecturer at department at Mackay Junior College of Medicine, Nursing and Management and also is a PhD student of Nursing department at National Taipei University of Nursing and Health Sciences. Before her devotion to research and teaching work, she had served a Clinical Nurse at a Pediatric Ward of Chang Gung Medical Center in Taipei for three years and obtained her master degree at Chang Gung University in 2004. Her main academic interests concentrate on the coping strategy for parents taking care of children with cerebral palsy by quantitative methods and hope to extend to the issues about children with hepatobiliary gastrointestinal disease at future.

E-mail: s188@mail.mkc.edu.tw