Predictors of parenting self-agency among mothers receiving substance abuse or mental health treatment.

Mothers' mental health or substance use disorders impact the behaviours of their children both short-term and long-term. There is increased concern for mothers with mental health or substance use disorders to effectively handle parenting challenges. Children of these mothers are at risk for emotional and behavioural adjustment problems as well as poor academic performances. Parenting self-agency refers to parents' perceptions of their confidence and ability to overcome barriers and manage issues in parenting. Examining the factors that predict parenting self-agency aids in understanding how nurses can assist mothers and families. The purpose of this study was to explore predictors of parenting self-agency among mothers who are impacted by mental health or substance use disorders. A secondary analysis was conducted using the baseline assessment data of a randomized trial that examined the efficacy of a nurse-led family-strengthening home-health intervention. The data were obtained from 172 mothers who were receiving outpatient treatment for substance use or other mental health disorders and had children under 18. A multivariate linear regression analysis was conducted to find predictors of parenting self-agency among participating mothers. The authors found that increased children's externalizing problems and intensity of hassle predicted lower parenting self-agency, and family cohesion predicted higher parenting self-agency. The authors conclude that treatments need to address family as a whole to increase mothers' parenting self-agency, thus assisting these mothers in raising their children in the best possible environment.

Development and Dissemination of the El Centro Health Disparities Measures Library.

PURPOSE: This report describes the development and dissemination of a library of English measures, with Spanish translations, on constructs relevant to social determinants of health and behavioral health outcomes. The El Centro Measures Library is a product of the Center of Excellence for Health Disparities Research: El Centro, a program funded by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities of the U.S. National Institutes of Health. The library is aimed at enhancing capacity for minority health and health disparities research, particularly for Hispanics living in the United States and abroad. DESIGN: The open-access library of measures (available through www.miami.edu/sonhs/measureslibrary) contains brief descriptions of each measure, scoring information (where available), links to related peer-reviewed articles, and measure items in both languages. Links to measure websites where commercially available measures can be purchased are included, as is contact information for measures that require author permission. Links to several other measures libraries are hosted on the library website. Other researchers may contribute to the library. METHODS: El Centro investigators began the library by electing to use a common set of measures across studies to assess demographic information, culture-related variables, proximal outcomes of interest, and major outcomes. The collection was expanded to include other health disparity research studies. In 2012, a formal process was developed to organize, expand, and centralize the library in preparation for a gradual process of dissemination to the national and international community of researchers. FINDINGS: The library currently contains 61 measures encompassing 12 categories of constructs. Thus far, the library has been accessed 8,883 times (unique page views as generated by Google Analytics), and responses from constituencies of users and measure authors have been favorable. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: With the paucity of availability and accessibility of translated measures, behavioral nursing research focused on reducing health disparities can benefit from repositories of research instruments such as the El Centro Measures Library.