Objective To compare asthma care roles of maternal and paternal caregivers, and examine associations
between caregiver involvement and the outcomes of adherence, morbidity, and parental
quality of life (QoL). Methods Mothers and fathers in 63 families of children, ages 5–9 years,
with persistent asthma completed semistructured interviews and questionnaires. Adherence was
measured via electronic monitoring. Paired t tests compared parental asthma care roles, and analysis
of covariance, controlling for socioeconomic status, evaluated associations of asthma outcomes
with caregiver involvement scores. Results Mothers had higher scores on measures of involvement,
beliefs in medication necessity, and on four subscales of the Family Asthma Management
System Scale interview (Asthma Knowledge, Relationship with Provider, Symptom Assessment,
and Response to Symptoms). Maternal QoL was lowest when both maternal and paternal
involvement was high. Paternal involvement was associated with increased morbidity.
Conclusions There is room for enhancement of fathers’ asthma care roles. Higher levels of
paternal involvement may be driven by family need.