Support Needs of Children with Cerebral Palsy

Abstract

Objectives: Support needs refer to the type, intensity and time necessary for a person to participate in the activities of daily living. The aim of this paper is to show the profile of support needs for children with cerebral palsy with regards to the level of functional ability of the upper and lower extremities. Methods: The sample comprised 40 respondents diagnosed with spastic cerebral palsy (23 girls (57.5%) and 17 boys (42.5%). The age range was from 7 to 14 years (Mean age = 10.33; SD = 3.31). The instruments used in the present study include the Supports Intensity Scale - Children's Version (SIS-C), The Gross Motor Function Classification System and Manual Ability Classification System for Children with Cerebral Palsy. Results: The reliability of the SIS- C was alpha = 0.97. The highest level of support needs was within the four domains. Support Needs Indexing showed significant differences in relation to the development of manual ability levels (F = 2.56; p = 0.05) and gross motor function levels (F = 3.25; p = 0.03). Conclusions: The results obtained indicate that children with cerebral palsy need support in individual life domains, in which, a model for planning interventions could be provided.