The community reintegration of patients with burn injuries post-discharge in the North west province, South Africa

Abstract

In a developing country like South Africa, challenges regarding community reintegration post burn injuries has not been adequately investigated. In this study of 55 adult participants admitted to Tshepong Hospital Burns Unit in the North West Province were assessed on discharge, at one month and six months post discharge using the Activities Health Assessment and Roles Checklist. Quality of life, community integration and access to occupational therapy were also assessed at six months. The 28 participants retained in the study returned to their previous roles and occupational performance levels but there was a decrease in the variety, comfort, satisfaction and social appropriateness for sleep, leisure and social participation activities. The time spent on worker and home maintainer roles decreased significantly at one month but returned to pre-morbid levels at six months. In terms of community integration only the social integration was affected with female participants achieving higher home, productivity and total integration scores. Half of the participants reported pain/discomfort and anxiety/depression while both QoL and community reintegration were moderately associated with the depth and extent of the burn injuries. The distance of the patients’ homes from health services and lack of finances prevented them from accessing occupational therapy which was associated with poor QoL. It is suggested that these services be made available in the community and that a support group model be investigated to help meet the reintegration challenges faced by patients with burn injuries.