Huda Faeeq Mohammed, Shukir Saleem Hasan
İstanbul Medical Journal - 2026;27(2):164-170
Introduction: Cerebral palsy (CP) describes a group of long-term neurological disorders that affect posture, mobility, and muscle tone due to damage to the developing brain, usually before or immediately after birth. Children with CP may have difficulty with balance, coordination, and fine motor skills. Some may also experience problems with speech, vision, or learning. The severity of symptoms can vary widely between people. For children with CP, prompt diagnosis and treatment-such as occupational therapy, physical therapy, and supportive care-are essential to improving function, independence, and general quality of life. Methods: A quasi-experimental study design was used. Caregivers and their children who had CP attended physiotherapy in the rehabilitation units at Azadi Teaching Hospital in Kirkuk City, Iraq. Non-probability sampling (purposive) was used to recruit 60 caregivers (30 in the intervention group and 30 in the control group). The intervention group received a specific educational program to improve caregivers' knowledge of home care, while the control group did not receive it. Only caregivers caring for children with CP were included. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews; the Mann-Whitney test was used to compare pre- and post-test measurements. The p value <=0.05 was considered a statistically significant difference. Results: Most caregivers (66.7-76.7%) were mothers from diverse educational and socioeconomic backgrounds. The most frequent type of spastic CP, occurring in 66.7-76.7% of cases, was observed in both groups. The pre-test results revealed no significant difference between the two groups before implementing the program. The program's effectiveness was demonstrated by the intervention group's statistically significant difference between pre- and post-test scores, whereas the control group's post-test scores remained unchanged. Conclusion: The structured educational program significantly enhanced caregivers' knowledge in the intervention group, with no improvement in the control group.
