Background:Social support has been identified as one of the key factors for enhancing the quality of life after stroke. However, a scientific tool that is valid for evaluating social support among stroke survivors in Nigeria has not been developed so far.Objectives:The objective of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Hausa translated versions of the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) and to validate it for future use in clinical research in Nigeria.Patients and Methods:This cross-sectional study was conducted on a sample of 140 adult stroke survivors attending rehabilitation services at stroke referral centers in Kano, Nigeria. The psychometric analysis of the Hausa-MSPSS involved face, content, criterion and construct validity tests, as well as internal and test-retest reliability. Confirmatory factor analysis was performed to assess validity of the three-factor (Family, Friends and Significant others) model for the Hausa-MSPSS.Results:Based on expert panel, clinicians’ review and patients’ feedback, the 12 item Hausa-MSPSS had sufficient face, content and criterion validity. In reliability analysis, the Cronbach’s alpha was 0.781. In test-retest reliability analysis, the minimum kappa value was 0.673. In Confirmatory factor analysis, the three-factor model was not acceptable. An alternative two-factor model with Family and Friends, as the two domain was found to be acceptable (Chi-square/df < 3, TLI, CFI > 0.9, RMSEA < 0.08). The average variances extracted for the two constructs were 0.5 and 0.7, respectively. The R-squared value between the two constructs was 0.397. Cross validity tested using 1000 bootstrap resamples gave satisfactory results (P = 0.079).Conclusions:The 11 item Hausa-MSPSS index is valid for the assessment of perceived social support among stroke survivors in Nigeria.

This study aims to test the translated Hausa version of the stroke impact scale SIS (3.0) and further evaluate its psychometric properties. The SIS 3.0 was translated from English into Hausa and was tested for its reliability and validity on a stratified random sample adult stroke survivors attending rehabilitation services at stroke referral hospitals in Kano, Nigeria. Psychometric analysis of the Hausa-SIS 3.0 involved face, content, criterion, and construct validity tests as well as internal and test-retest reliability. In reliability analyses, the Cronbach's alpha values for the items in Strength, Hand function, Mobility, ADL/IADL, Memory and thinking, Communication, Emotion, and Social participation domains were 0.80, 0.92, 0.90, 0.78, 0.84, 0.89, 0.58, and 0.74, respectively. There are 8 domains in stroke impact scale 3.0 in confirmatory factory analysis; some of the items in the Hausa-SIS questionnaire have to be dropped due to lack of discriminate validity. In the final analysis, a parsimonious model was obtained with two items per construct for the 8 constructs (Chi-square/df < 3, TLI and CFI > 0.9, and RMSEA < 0.08). Cross validation with 1000 bootstrap samples gave a satisfactory result (P = 0.011). In conclusion, the shorter 16-item Hausa-SIS seems to measure adequately the QOL outcomes in the 8 domains.

Objectives: To overcome the inherent limitations of the medical and social models of disability, the World Health Organization developed the first international conceptualization of disability: the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF). Despite the ICF’s robustness, it is still underutilized in research and practice in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). This article discusses the applications, strengths, limitations, and unique considerations when using the ICF to explore disabilities in LMICs like Nigeria. Methods: A literature search was conducted in Medline, CINAHL, Web of Science, AMED, and Google Scholar. Articles were selected if they reported on any of the development, structure, applications, strengths, and limitations of the ICF. The review draws from the selected articles using a narrative discussion. Results: The literature search yielded 22 articles that met the eligibility criteria. The ICF is a classification of components of health and functioning, which views disability as an outcome of a dynamic interaction between a person’s health condition and contextual factors. The ICF was developed cross-culturally; thus, it is applicable in various socio-environmental contexts. However, despite its comprehensiveness, the ICF is criticized for lack of clear theoretical underpinnings, overlapping and redundant components, and absence of systematized personal factors. Discussion: The ICF has brought a significant paradigm shift in the measurement of disability by explicitly recognizing the role of contextual factors in the incapacitation process and placing all health conditions on an equal footing. Hence, stakeholders in disability research and practice in LMICs need to prioritize the ICF over other disablement models.

Background: Stroke is currently the main cause of neurological disability in Nigeria. The impact of stroke can be devastating, leaving a person with significant residual impairment of physical, psychological, and social functions. The residual physical consequences can pose a significant threat to a survivor’s quality of life: yet, we have an incomplete understanding of how stroke affects long-term quality of life.Objective: To develop a thorough understanding how essential social relationship and support systems are to enabling long-term QOL following stroke.Methods: This study reports finding from an in-depth interview with 15 stroke patients to understand the importance of social relationship and support system as essential dimensions of long-term quality of life following stroke.Results: The key themes identified by the patients were: social and instrumental supports, communication, autonomy, social role adjustments, sexual relationship and stigma. A lot of the interviews with the patients consisted of narratives regarding how stroke altered social relationships with families, spouses, friends and significant others. Conclusion: The finding of this study is consistent with the pre-existing researches attesting the importance of social relationship and support systems after stroke and therefore recommend including assessment of social functions and social support in estimating stroke-related quality of life.