[Social support for Puerto Rican adults with cancer diagnosis]

This research presents a descriptive study that attended to explore perceived social support among Puerto Rican adults through the ages of 50-64 with cancer diagnosis. A sample (n = 50) with different types of cancer receiving radiotherapy treatment were surveyed at the Oncology Hospital of the University of Puerto Rico Medical Center at Río Piedras. The Norbeck Social Support Questionnaire (NSSQ) was used for this purpose. The range was distributed equitative by gender (50% male, 50% females) of which 62% (n = 31) were married and 72% (n = 36) lived in the metropolitan area. The mean scholarity was 12 years with a range between 0-19 years. Concerning employment, 44.9% (n = 22) was unemployed. In the social support scale, the most relevant finding was provided by their family and relatives in 88% of the sample who also reported a moderate support perception. Social support offered by husbands and wives (62%) was reported as the second and third most relevant support network (34%). The subjects perceived a moderate feeling of love, respect and admiration from their social support network. The confidence experienced toward their social support network also obtained a moderate perception. As related to "how much did the network agree with the subjects actions or thoughts?", an average of 22.72 points (sd = 13.68) was obtained. This suggests that the subjects agree moderately with their network actions or thoughts. Subjects report that the average levels of help perceived from the network was of 21.92 points (sd = 12.75) meaning a perceived moderate support. The average time knowing the network was more than five years, while the frequency of contact ranged between weekly and daily. Of the subjects surveyed, 68% (n = 34) had not lost an important network during the last year. When the amount of perceived support of the network is described, the indicator "a little" had the most significant result reporting an average of 72%. In conclusion, family and relatives were the main source of support. Nevertheless, the subjects perception of support is moderate as demonstrated by the percentages obtained. This research demonstrated that health professionals do not appear as a significant support source. It is suggested to examine the role of health professionals as a substitute support source and encourage care strategies based in all different dimensions of support (i.e. functional, tangible, network properties, amount of networks, durability and frequency of contacts). It's also recommended the development of instruments that may estimate the quantity and quality of support experienced by patients in all health settings. Finally, efforts must be addressed in terms of public policy to improve the extension and quality of support networks for patients.