Empowerment of informal caregivers in mental health in childhood: validation of the Italian - Family Empowerment Scale (I-FES)

AIM: The Family Empowerment Scale (FES) is a tool, constituted by three subscales (family, services and community), which allows to have a picture of the state of empowerment of informal caregivers (IC) of minors with neurodevelopment disorder. The aim of this study is to present the transcultural validation of the Italian version, the Italian-Family Empowerment Scale (I-FES). METHODS: Through the experts and focus groups, the definitive translation of the I-FES was identified, compiled by 115 IC, with a preliminary data questionnaire and Rogers' Empowerment Scale. RESULTS: The I-FES has good face and construct validity (Bartlett test p<0.01), shows superior loads to the cutoff of Stevens (0.48), cluster analysis identifies the subdivision of the three subscale), and is reliable (Cronbach's α=0.96). The results obtained from the compilation of the IC show how much more empowerment is expressed at a family level and partly services level, this isn't associated with community life. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: The I-FES is valid and reliable and in comparison to existing scales, it allows to measure personal and interpersonal empowerment, but also that community level, combining everything in a single questionnaire. The mental health care systems in the developmental age can support empowerment, through the I-FES and associated parent training, allowing the informal IC a greater critical awareness, control, acceptance of the itself, participation; with increase of the health literacy.