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Objective: This qualitative study explored the experiences of Latino siblings of children with developmental disabilities., Methods: Parents and typically developing siblings from 15 Latino families with a child with a developmental disability participated in separate interviews., Results: Using consensual qualitative research methodology, domains reflecting siblings' relationships, emotional experiences and communication about the disability were identified. The child's need for caregiving was a prominent topic in the sibling and parent narratives. Parents reported concerns about siblings' experience of differential treatment, whereas siblings reported concerns about restricted social activities because of their brother/sister., Conclusions: Including multiple informants revealed commonalities and differences in parents' and siblings' perspectives on the impact of a child's disability. The importance of considering sibling adaptation in sociocultural context is discussed., (© 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.)

Background: This paper aims to compare orphans' development in two different care systems., Methods: Based on age, sex, psychological trauma scores, competence and psychological problem scores, two comparable samples were found representing orphans in the traditional foster care (n = 94) and the orphanages (n = 48) in a middle-large city in Iraqi Kurdistan. At an index interview, Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL), Harvard-Uppsala Trauma Questionnaire for Children and Post-traumatic Stress Symptoms for Children (PTSS-C) were administered to the caregivers. After 1 year the CBCL, and after 2 years both the CBCL and the PTSS-C, were-re-administered, consecutively., Results: Although both samples revealed significant decrease in the means of total competence and problem scores over time, the improvement in activity scale, externalizing problem scores and post-traumatic stress disorder-related symptoms proved to be more significant in the foster care than in the orphanages. While the activity scale improved in the foster care, the school competence deteriorated in both samples, particularly among the girls in the orphanages. The improvement of boys' activity scores in the foster care, and deterioration of girls' school competence in the orphanages were the most significant gender differences between samples over time., Conclusions: Even if the two orphan care systems showed more similarities than differences, the foster care revealed better outcomes over time. The results are discussed in relation to gender, age, socio-economic situation, cultural values and the characteristics of each care system.

There is a clear need to improve the delivery of services to Asian families and their children with disabilities. This paper describes some of the key points where communication and access may break down. It offers principles to guide assessments of children, and makes recommendations on ways of working with interpreters, monitoring uptake of services and strategies for supporting and informing Asian families.