BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The burden of caregiving can be harmful to both carers' and patients' functional health, but a specific instrument to assess the burden of caregiving as experienced by carers of stroke patients is not yet available. The Sense of Competence Questionnaire (SCQ), reliable and valid among caregivers of dementia patients, was evaluated on its metric properties in a population of partners of stroke patients. METHODS: As part of a multicenter study on quality of care, SCQ burden scores of partners and functional health of patients were assessed 6 months after stroke (group A; n=166). In this study group, the reliability in terms of homogeneity, the construct validity, and the clinical validity of the SCQ were evaluated. The test-retest reliability was assessed in a separate group (group B; n=47). The feasibility was examined in both study groups. RESULTS: The reliability of the total SCQ score was good (Chronbach's alpha coefficient=0.83; intraclass correlation coefficient=0.93). Statistical support for construct validity was shown by principal-components analysis. Clinical validity was supported by the association between higher SCQ burden scores and patients' impaired functional health: cognitive function (P=.03), disability (P=.10), handicap (P<.01), and quality of life (P=.02). CONCLUSIONS: The SCQ is a reliable and valid instrument for assessing burden of caregiving as experienced by partners of stroke patients. It is suitable for use in cross-sectional stroke studies and may help to identify partners at risk for high levels of burden and caregiving-related problems.
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The burden of caregiving can be harmful to both carers' and patients' functional health, but a specific instrument to assess the burden of caregiving as experienced by carers of strokepatients is not yet available. The Sense of Competence Questionnaire (SCQ), reliable and valid among caregivers of dementiapatients, was evaluated on its metric properties in a population of partners of strokepatients. METHODS: As part of a multicenter study on quality of care, SCQ burden scores of partners and functional health of patients were assessed 6 months after stroke (group A; n=166). In this study group, the reliability in terms of homogeneity, the construct validity, and the clinical validity of the SCQ were evaluated. The test-retest reliability was assessed in a separate group (group B; n=47). The feasibility was examined in both study groups. RESULTS: The reliability of the total SCQ score was good (Chronbach's alpha coefficient=0.83; intraclass correlation coefficient=0.93). Statistical support for construct validity was shown by principal-components analysis. Clinical validity was supported by the association between higher SCQ burden scores and patients' impaired functional health: cognitive function (P=.03), disability (P=.10), handicap (P<.01), and quality of life (P=.02). CONCLUSIONS: The SCQ is a reliable and valid instrument for assessing burden of caregiving as experienced by partners of strokepatients. It is suitable for use in cross-sectional stroke studies and may help to identify partners at risk for high levels of burden and caregiving-related problems.
Authors: Pamela H Mitchell; Linda Teri; Richard Veith; Ann Buzaitis; David Tirschwell; Kyra Becker; Michael Fruin; Ruth Kohen; Kevin C Cain Journal: J Stroke Cerebrovasc Dis Date: 2008 May-Jun Impact factor: 2.136
Authors: Smi Choi-Kwon; Pamela H Mitchell; Richard Veith; Linda Teri; Ann Buzaitis; Kevin C Cain; Kyra J Becker; David Tirschwell; Michael Fruin; Jimi Choi; Jong S Kim Journal: Rehabil Nurs Date: 2009 Jul-Aug Impact factor: 1.625
Authors: Renske J Hoefman; N Job A van Exel; Sandra Looren de Jong; W Ken Redekop; Werner B F Brouwer Journal: Qual Life Res Date: 2011-01-01 Impact factor: 4.147