PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Zahra Khazaeipour
AU  - Abolfazl Abouie
AU  - Fatemeh Zarei
AU  - Hamid Mirzaaghaie
AU  - Afsaneh Abd-Mousavi
AU  - Alireza Salehi-Nejad
AU  - Alexander R Vaccaro
AU  - Vafa Rahimi-Movaghar
TI  - Personal, family and societal educational needs assessment of individuals with spinal cord injury in Iran
AID  - 10.17712/nsj.2018.3.20180023
DP  - 2018 Jul 01
TA  - Neurosciences Journal
PG  - 216--222
VI  - 23
IP  - 3
4099  - http://nsj.org.sa/content/23/3/216.short
4100  - http://nsj.org.sa/content/23/3/216.full
SO  - Neurosciences (Riyadh)2018 Jul 01; 23
AB  - Objectives: To explore individuals’ perception of the personal, family and societal educational needs following a spinal cord injury (SCI).Methods: Sixty-one patients who sustained a traumatic SCI between March 2015 and June 2016 referred to Brain and Spinal Cord Injury Research Center (BASIR) were included in a cross sectional study and completed an online survey containing open-and closed-ended questions, in Iran. Participants’ responses were analyzed i using a qualitative approach with a thematic analysis.Results: Following a thematic analysis of the patient’s perceived educational needs, 3 themes and 14 subthemes were identified. The 3 themes included personal, family, and societal educational perceived needs. Within personal educational needs, there were 7 subthemes which included personal independence and transportation, financial independence, life skills modification, knowledge about SCI, prevention of SCI complications, relationships and sexual function, and psychological adjustments. Among family educational needs, the 3 subthemes were caregiver skills and communication, first aid and emergency skills, and emotional and psychological support. For societal educational needs, the 4 subthemes described were social integration, interpersonal communication skills, SCI awareness and injury prevention, sympathize while avoiding pity.Conclusion: According to our findings, people with SCI have various needs that need to be addressed. Educational support should be a part of a comprehensive rehabilitation program and geared towards addressing the patients’ personal and family needs, while educating the community about SCI in order to allow for reintegration into society.