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Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2015 Aug;40(7):680-8.
doi: 10.1093/jpepsy/jsv001. Epub 2015 Feb 13.

Long-Term Caregiver Mental Health Outcomes Following a Predominately Online Intervention for Adolescents With Complicated Mild to Severe Traumatic Brain Injury

Christine L Petranovich  1 , Shari L Wade  2 , H Gerry Taylor  3 , Amy Cassedy  4 , Terry Stancin  5 , Michael W Kirkwood  6 , Tanya Maines Brown  7
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Long-Term Caregiver Mental Health Outcomes Following a Predominately Online Intervention for Adolescents With Complicated Mild to Severe Traumatic Brain Injury

Christine L Petranovich et al. J Pediatr Psychol. 2015 Aug.

Abstract

Objective: To examine the efficacy of counselor-assisted problem solving (CAPS) in improving long-term caregiver psychological functioning following traumatic brain injury (TBI) in adolescents.

Methods: This randomized clinical trial compared CAPS (n = 65), a predominantly online problem-solving intervention, with an Internet resource comparison (n = 67) program. Families of adolescents with TBI completed a baseline assessment and follow-up assessments 6, 12, and 18 months later. General linear mixed models were used to examine longitudinal changes in caregiver global psychological distress, depressive symptoms, and caregiving self-efficacy. Family income and injury severity were examined as moderators of treatment efficacy.

Results: Family income moderated long-term changes in caregiver psychological distress. For lower-income caregivers, the CAPS intervention was associated with lower levels of psychological distress at 6, 12, and 18 months post baseline.

Conclusions: These findings support the utility of Web-based interventions in improving long-term caregiver psychological distress, particularly for lower-income families.

Keywords: caregiver outcomes; psychopathology; traumatic brain injury.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Mean estimates of interaction of group, income, and injury severity with SCL-90-R GSI as the dependent measure. Note. IRC = Internet resources comparison; CAPS = counselor-assisted problem solving; SCL-90 = Symptom Checklist-90
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Mean estimates of interaction of injury severity and time with CES-D as the dependent measure. Note. Mean estimates indicated significant group differences at baseline (p = .01) with the remaining contrasts nonsignificant (p > .05). See Table II. CES-D = Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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