introduction:

Parental stress emerges when parental role demands are perceived to surpass capabilities and resources that parents have. COVID-19 pandemic has brought new challenges to families. This study aim was to determine parental stress during the state of emergency declared in Portugal between March 19th and May 2nd, 2020.

Material and methods:

Descriptive transversal study. Convenience sample of 77 families of children and teenagers who were followed-up on regular pediatric surveillance appointments. A link was sent to the email address available on the clinical record, with a sociodemographic questionnaire and the Portuguese version of Parental Stress Scale, that classifies parental stress in low, intermediate, and high.

Results:

From 137 emails sent, 75 responses were obtained, 70 of which from mothers. Father’s responses were excluded from the inferential statistical analysis because of the low number. The average stress level was low. Nine responders (all mothers) had an intermediate level of stress. A statistically significant difference was found between parental stress level and having two or more kids, when one of the parents was a health-care worker and when kids played on the street.

Conclusion:

Despite an average low stress level, some specific groups showed a significantly higher stress, which can bring potential consequences for family functioning and child development that should be prevented.

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