Introduction:

In Colombia, according to the National Mental Health Survey conducted in 2015, the lifetime prevalence of major depression, bipolar affective disorder, and schizophrenia is 9.1 %, 1.3 %, and 1 %, respectively. These severe mental disorders (SMD) are characterized by being assumed from a nosographic stance that does not incorporate the interaction between the context and the person. Disability is a dimension of severe mental disorders, and it needs to be investigated using tools such as the International Classification of the Functioning of Disability and Health. Knowing their frequency and personal and environmental factors that explain them can facilitate the implementation of strategies to improve the quality of life of this population.

Materials and methods:

An exploratory, observational, cross-sectional study was conducted to determine the prevalence and to describe the contribution of socio-demographic, clinical, and psychosocial variables in an explanatory model of disability in people with severe mental disorders, attended in the mental health and psychiatry services of a specialized institution in Cali, Colombia.

Results:

From the sample, 65.9 % showed some degree of disability; 46.2 %, moderate disability; 19.4 %, severe disability, and 0.4 %, extreme disability. The explanatory model includes the contribution of socio-demographic, clinical, and psychosocial variables. Conclusion: This study shows that the frequency of disability in the population with SMD is recurrent, and little studied linking performance from each domain that is part of daily life. The results of the investigation allow identifying the contribution of personal and environmental factors in the disability experienced by this population in Cali.

        · abstract in Spanish | Portuguese     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )