Long-Term Family Needs After a Traumatic Brain Injury: A VA TBI Model Systems Study.

Abstract

Objective: To describe the self-reported needs of family caregivers of service members and veterans (SMVs) with traumatic brain injury (TBI) at 10 to 15 years post-injury and to identify unique predictors of unmet family needs.

Setting: Five Department of Veterans Affairs Polytrauma Rehabilitation Centers.

Participants: A total of 209 family caregivers of SMVs with TBI from the VA TBI Model Systems national database who completed a 10- or 15-year follow-up assessment.

Design: Observational study.

Main outcome measure: Family Needs Questionnaire-Revised (FNQ-R).

Results: Item-, domain-, and total score-level descriptive analyses of FNQ-R responses were conducted. On average, 56.3% of the FNQ-R family caregiver needs were reported as met. Health information and involvement in care needs were the most often met, and emotional support and instrumental support needs were the least often met. Adjusted multivariable regression models demonstrated that urban-dwelling SMVs (compared to suburban) and spouses/significant others (compared to parents) were associated with more unmet family needs. Distinct associations were identified between the 6 FNQ-R domains and SMV environmental factors (ie, urbanicity, rurality, and being active duty at follow-up), SMV comorbidities (ie, receiving mental health treatment in the year prior to the follow-up), and caregiver factors (ie, spouses/significant others).

Conclusion: Family caregivers of SMVs with TBI reported multiple unmet needs at 10 to 15 years post-injury, emphasizing the importance of ongoing caregiver support after TBI. Policy and programming to support military caregivers should consider the current findings to direct resources to address the identified unmet needs.