Abstract
A study was made on the consciousness, situation and need for social support of a family with a child undergoing a liver transplantation. A questionnaire survey was made on 46 families or 90 parents who had had their children operated on at the Tokyo University Hospital. The result of this survey is as follows : 1. When the parents were told that their child was in need of liver transplantation, their anxieties were over the future of their child, their family life, and financial resources. 2. When the child was hospitalized, mainly the mother stayed with the child while the household work was taken over by a grand mother or other relatives. In other words, workload is heavier on the part of the female members of the family. 3. The family suffered the irregularity of two family members staying in the hospital. 4. During hospitalization, the mother's stress, both mental as well as physical, was greater than the father's. 5. Social as well as administrative supports are greatly needed for the family to overcome difficulties involved with their child's intractable disease.
