Quality of life of working and non-working Jordanian mothers caring for chronically ill child and its associated factors

BACKGROUND: Balancing work-life and routines of daily life gets complex when a child is chronically ill. AIM: This study aimed to examine the QOL of working and non-working mothers caring for children with a chronic illness in Jordan and determine predictors of QOL of working mothers. DESIGN: Descriptive comparative cross-sectional design. METHOD: Data from 164 mothers who cared for a child with a chronic disease were collected. The World Health Organization Quality of Life – BREF (WHOQOL-BREF) was used to collect the data on physical, psychological, social relationships, and environment domains. RESULTS: The quality of life of working mothers was significantly lower than those of non-working mothers on all domains of WHOQOL-BREF. Mother's working status, monthly income, evaluation of their own health explained 41% of the variance. Social, family and employer support may help them overcome the challenges of caring for a child with a chronic illness and maintain good QOL.