Appreciation of community-based rehabilitation by caregivers of children with a disability

Evaluations of community-based rehabilitation (CBR) programmes generally focus on quantitative data. To gain insight into the determinants of the outcomes, process-oriented data are needed. From the literature six variables have been identified that possibly correlate with the evaluation of CBR by caregivers of children with a disability. These variables are: (1) traditional beliefs, (2) impact of a child with a disability on the caregiver, (3) community involvement, (4) perceived ability to teach the child, (5) attitude towards various health services, and (6) expectations for the future of a disabled child. The study was done in the CBR projects in Zimbabwe. Seventy-five caregivers were interviewed. Background, perceived abilities to teach and expectations of the caregivers were very different. This study revealed a significant correlation between the appreciation of CBR and the attitude towards various health services, and between the perceived ability to teach and the expectations for the future of the child.