Northcentral University, Prescott Valley, AZ, USA.
NeuroRehabilitation. 2012;30(1):87-95. doi: 10.3233/NRE-2011-0730.
Advances in medical and assistive technology have increased the likelihood of survival following a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Consequently, families frequently must provide care to individuals with TBI. Because they are rarely prepared for the associated demanding medical needs and financial burden, family caregivers are at risk for physical and emotional problems, which can negatively influence their individual and family functioning. Whereas scholars have examined the influence of survivor functioning on caregiver burden, few have explicitly recognized that caregiver burden also influences survivor functioning. Results of a multivariate linear regression suggest that, in a sample of 51 pairs of TBI survivors and their caregivers living in Colombia, survivors receiving care from a family member who reported a higher level of burden had poorer objective neuropsychological functioning than those receiving care from a family member who reported a lower level of burden, after controlling for survivor education and history of occupational therapy. Therefore, a family-focused approach might maximize intervention effectiveness, especially for Latin American and Hispanic families, which tend to be characterized by a strong sense of familism. The emphasis on family can create problems in a healthcare system that views the individual as the primary unit.
医学和辅助技术的进步增加了创伤性脑损伤（TBI）患者存活的可能性。因此，家庭通常必须为 TBI 患者提供护理。由于他们很少为相关的高要求的医疗需求和经济负担做好准备，家庭照顾者面临身体和情绪问题的风险，这可能会对他们的个人和家庭功能产生负面影响。尽管学者们已经研究了幸存者功能对照顾者负担的影响，但很少有人明确认识到照顾者负担也会影响幸存者的功能。多元线性回归的结果表明，在哥伦比亚的 51 对 TBI 幸存者及其照顾者的样本中，与接受来自报告负担水平较低的家庭成员的照顾的幸存者相比，接受来自报告负担水平较高的家庭成员的照顾的幸存者的客观神经心理学功能更差，在控制了幸存者的教育和职业治疗史后。因此，以家庭为中心的方法可能会最大限度地提高干预效果，特别是对于拉丁美洲和西班牙裔家庭，这些家庭通常以强烈的家庭观念为特征。对家庭的重视可能会给将个人视为主要单位的医疗保健系统带来问题。
