SPINAL CORD INJURY FUNCTIONAL IMPAIRMENT AND CAREGIVER MENTAL HEALTH IN A COLOMBIAN SAMPLE: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY

Abstract

Limited literature has examined the connections between caregiver mental health and the physical and psychosocial functioning of individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) in Latin America, despite the dearth of services and unique needs of this population. The purpose of the current study was to examine the relationships between caregiver mental health (anxiety, burden, depression, satisfaction with life, and self-esteem) and SCI physical and psychosocial functional impairments in a Colombian sample. Forty SCI caregivers were recruited from Neiva, Colombia, and completed measures of SCI impairments and their own mental health. Greater SCI impairments, and caregiver stress due to those impairments, were associated with higher caregiver depression and anxiety, although only patient psychosocial functional impairments and related caregiver stress were uniquely associated with caregiver depression. Due to the collectivist nature of and the importance of family in many Latino cultures, mental health interventions for family members who provide care for an individual with SCI having greater psychosocial impairments may be particularly important.