International Journal of Nursing Practice 2003; 9: 368–373 HJ Maltby et al. Correspondence: Hendrika Maltby, University of Vermont, Main Street, Burlington,VT 05405, USA. Email: Hendrika.Maltby@uvm.edu ✠ RESEARCH PAPER ✠ The parenting competency framework: Learning to be a parent of a child with asthma Hendrika J Maltby RN PhD FRCNA Associate Professor, University of Vermont, Burlington,VT 05405, USA, and Adjunct Associate Professor, Edith Cowan University, Churchlands, Western Australia, Australia Linda Kristjanson RN PhD Professor, School of Nursing and Public Health, Edith Cowan University, Churchlands,Western Australia, Australia Mardhie E Coleman RN MN PhD(cand) Lecturer, School of Nursing and Public Health, Edith Cowan University, Churchlands,Western Australia, Australia Accepted for publication May 2003 Maltby HJ, Kristjanson L, Coleman ME. International Journal of Nursing Practice 2003; 9: 368–373 The parenting competency framework: Learning to be a parent of a child with asthma Every parent who faces an illness in their child might doubt their competence to care. When a chronic illness is diagnosed, competence can be severely challenged because of the sustained and multiple disruptions to daily life. A conceptual frame- work entitled ‘Learning to be a Parent of a Child with Asthma’ was developed from the results of a descriptive phenom- enological study completed in Perth, Western Australia. It describes the stages of challenges to competency that parents experience as they learn to care for their asthmatic children. The impact of this illness on parents and the extent to which they are able to help their children respond to the demands of asthma are critical components in understanding the effect of this disease on parental competency. Insight into parental competency and the relationship to chronic illness will help health professionals provide the support and information needed by parents to manage asthma in their children. Key words: asthma, chronic illness, family, parenting competence. INTRODUCTION Parental role attainment is a process by which parents achieve competence in the parenting role. 1 This compe- tence is reflected partly by the behaviours that parents use to care for their children. Every parent who faces an ill- ness in their child might doubt their competence to care for the child. When a chronic illness is diagnosed, how- ever, parental competence can be severely challenged because of the sustained and multiple disruptions to daily life. A conceptual framework was developed from a descriptive phenomenological study completed in Perth, Western Australia, that elicited meanings of day-to-day life with asthma from the perspective of mothers (unpubl. data, 1999). The study describes the stages of challenges to competency that mothers experience as they learn to care for their asthmatic children. The impact of this illness on mothers and the extent to which they are able to help their children respond to demands of asthma are critical components in understanding the effect of this disease on parental competency. Evidence from the study indicates that support needs vary according to the individual, age of the child, length of