Role of Family in the Management of Type-I Diabetes: An Indian Experience  Paulomi Matam Sudhir and V. Kumaraiah National Institute of Mental Health and NeuroSciences (NIMHANS)  C. Munichoodappa Bangalore Hospital The role of the family in the management of Type-I diabetes is gaining recognition. In countries where the adolescent is dependent on the family for medical needs, the family’s role is all the more important. At times, when the family is uncooperative, the care of the adolescent is hampered, making psychosocial intervention even more difficult. The following case study illustrates the difficulty encountered while working with a young diabetic belonging to an Indian family. The issues related to parental role and management of diabetes-related problems are discussed. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol 59: 715–722, 2003. Keywords: Type-I diabetes; family; adolescence; behavior; non-compliance Chronic illness in adolescence is particularly stressful (Charron-Prochownik, Kovacs, Obrosky, & Ho, 1995). In addition to normal developmental demands faced by the adoles- cent, chronic medical illness places an additional burden on the adolescent and family. Insulin- dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM), or Type-I diabetes mellitus, is one such chronic illness. Typically diagnosed in childhood, with a peak incidence in adolescence, the treatment of IDDM requires complex changes in lifestyle in the form of changes in amount and time of food consumption, daily exercise, and often multiple injections of insulin (LaGrec et al., 1995). Illness management is particularly important because of severe long- and short- term complications associated with poor glycemic control (Orchard, 1994). Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to: Paulomi Matam Sudhir, Department of Clinical Psychology, National Institute of Mental Health and NeuroSciences (NIMHANS), Hosur Road, Bangalore- 560 029, India; e-mail: paulomi@mantraonline.com. JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY, Vol. 59(6), 715–722 (2003) © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI: 10.1002/jclp.10151