There is no correlation between the depth or extent of a burn and the stress it induces in the family. Most parents suffer the same process of guilt, anxiety and anger, whether the burn is large or small and irrespective of how the burn was caused. Parents of a burned child have prolonged disruption to ordinary family life with a child who requires time-consuming daily attention for months after leaving hospital.

The impact on the siblings of the burned child is also a primary concern to parents whose daily routine is disrupted by the injury, hospitalization and rehabilitation process of the burn survivor. Financial hardship can be a big worry for the family; the mother having to sometimes stop work to visit the child daily or even sleep at the hospital.