Assessment of Psychosocial Impact of Spinal Cord Injury among Survivors in National Orthopaedic Hospital Dala-Kano, Northwestern Nigeria

Abstract

The experience of spinal cord injury (SCI) is one of the most devastating injuries that might affect an individual. Despite this, healthcare  providers give inadequate attention to the psychological needs of SCI survivors. This study aimed to assess the psychological impact of  spinal cord injury among survivors at National Orthopaedic Hospital, DalaKano. A cross-sectional descriptive survey design was adopted  for the study. A purposive sampling technique was used to recruit 30 SCI survivors and a structured intervieweradministered  questionnaire was used for data collection with a 100% (n=30) retrieval rate. Findings from the study revealed that the majority 20 (66.7%)  of the respondents develop emotional problems such as depression and anxiety. However, less than half of 14 (46.7%) of the  respondents experienced impaired cognitive function. More than three quarter 23 (76.7%) of them experienced bouts of sadness. The  results further revealed that SCI interferes with their family roles 18 (60%) and jobs 18 (60%) and fewer number of patients with SCI had  social support. It is concluded that survivors of spinal cord injury suffered mild to moderate emotional imbalances and therefore, it was  recommended that a holistic multidisciplinary approach be adopted for SCI survivors in addition to provision of functioning support  groups, effective follow-up services as well as health and vocational education.