The effect of psycho-educational interventions on general health of family caregivers of patients with spinal cord injury: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Family caregivers are often responsible for providing significant support to relatives who require care at home. However, evidence suggests that family caregivers have limited information, resources or support to prepare them for such a role. Furthermore, family caregiving can be associated with negative physical and psychosocial outcomes. This study examines the short-term impact of psychoeducational interventions on genera health of family caregivers of patients with spinal cord injury. In this randomized controlled trial 62 caregivers, who had a primary role, participated in this study; these candidates were randomly categorized into intervention (n=33) and control (n=29) groups. Caregivers of the intervention group took part in the training sections, which were held once a week for four successive weeks (each session lasting 90 minutes), while control group received no training. Both groups completed the general health questionnaire (GHQ-28) before the intervention and 2 and 6 weeks after the intervention. A Chi-square test, independent t-tests, fisher exact test and Repeated Measures Analysis of Variance were used with the SPSS program for data analysis. The results have revealed that all the participants had mental health disorders, in both groups. After the intervention a significant difference was found between the two study groups regarding the mean score of mental health 2 and 6 weeks after the intervention (p= 0.001). Similar results were also obtained regarding the domains of mental health (p<0.05). The results revealed the effectiveness of psycho-educational interventions in improving general health among caregivers of patients with spinal cord injury. Designing continual programs along with consultation is essential and beneficial in promoting general health of family caregivers of spinal cord injury patients.