The caregivers of 22 severely head-injured individuals were interviewed at 6 and 12 months post injury to obtain information about the extent of their distress and to in vestigate the relationship between their distress and two aspects of burden: caregivers' perceptions of the head-injured person's problems and an objective assessment of func tional independence. Caregivers reported high levels of distress. The factors associated with caregiver distress included the number of perceived problems at 6 months post injury, the overall level of disability, and certain aspects of functional independence at both 6 and 12 months, particularly if the person required assistance with self-care and home-based tasks. Implications for rehabilitation of both the head-injured indi vidual and his or her caregivers are examined, especially with reference to issues sur rounding return to the community. Key Words: Caregivers—Head injury—Psycho logical distress—Functional outcome—Newcastle Independence Assessment Form (N1AF)—GHQ-28
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