Purpose
This study explored the maternal experiences of providing home care for infants and toddlers with tracheostomies in South Korea.
Methods
Using a qualitative descriptive design, the study examined the experiences of 10 mothers with children under 36 months who had at least 3 months of home care experience. Semi-structured interviews were conducted between April and August 2024, lasting from 72 to 138 minutes. All interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed by employing thematic analysis.
Results
Four main themes were identified: (1) navigating the demands of home care, (2) bearing witness to a constrained childhood, (3) drifting apart through caregiving strain, and (4) learning to carry the weight alone and together. These reflected the mothers’ struggles with inadequate preparation, limited support, financial and emotional strain, along with the gradual development of caregiving expertise through lived experience and peer support, particularly via online.
Conclusion
Mothers caring for young children with tracheostomies in South Korea faced interrelated systemic, economic, developmental, and psychosocial challenges, while developing a sense of competence and resilience. The findings highlight the need for context-responsive strategies in South Korea, including standardized caregiver education and transitional support, equitable access to essential resources, inclusive childcare opportunities, and integrated psychosocial services. Collectively, these efforts are essential to ensuring safer and more sustainable pediatric tracheostomy care at home.

PURPOSE
The purpose of this study was to examine the level stress in rearing children and quality of life of mothers of children with disabilities and to identify the relationship between stress of rearing these children and quality of life of the mothers.
METHOD
A descriptive, correlational study design was used. The participants in this study were 225 mothers of children with disabilities. With SPSS, t-test, ANOVA, and Pearson's correlation coefficients were used to analyze the data.
RESULTS
1) The mean score for maternal stress in rearing children with disabilities was 3.46, and for quality of life, 2.80. 2) Stress in rearing these children had a negative correlation with quality of life (r=-.761, p=.000). CONCLUSION: It is suggested that intervention programs to decrease the stress of rearing these children and increase the quality of life should be offered to mothers of children with disabilities.