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DESK REVIEWS | 08.02.06. About the health impact of unpaid carers, is there evidence for aspects of both physical and mental health?

DESK REVIEW | 08.02.06. About the health impact of unpaid carers, is there evidence for aspects of both physical and mental health?

Yes. There is evidence that family carers of older people present signs of depression and stress (Oliveira & D’Elboux, 2012).

References:

Oliveira, D. C., & D’Elboux, M. J. (2012). Estudos nacionais sobre cuidadores familiares de idosos: Revisão integrativa. Revista Brasileira de Enfermagem, 65(5), 829–838. https://doi.org/10.1590/S0034-71672012000500017

 

There is limited evidence examining the impact unpaid care has on both the physical and mental health of caregivers. Srivastava and colleagues (2016) examined the quality of life (QOL) and burden experienced by primary caregivers of people with dementia in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. The authors report that caregiver burden ranges from mild to moderate, but this burden affects the psychological, physical, social, and environmental QOL of caregivers. Similarly, Jathana and colleagues (2011) found caregiving to be associated with poor physical and mental QOL in a study conducted in India.

References:

Jathanna, R. P., KS, L., & Bhandary, P. V. (2011). Burden and coping in informal caregivers of persons with dementia: a cross sectional study. Online Journal of Health and Allied Sciences, 9(4).

Srivastava, G., Tripathi, R. K., Tiwari, S. C., Singh, B., & Tripathi, S. M. (2016). Caregiver Burden and Quality of Life of Key Caregivers of Patients with Dementia. Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine, 38(2), 133–136. https://doi.org/10.4103/0253-7176.178779

No data was sourced for this question.

No specific data was presented, as it is not available.

Research in South Africa has shown that carers for persons living with dementia need substantial material (i.e., cash, food, transport) and emotional support, and that this need increases as the disease progresses (Gurayah, 2015). Carers of persons living with dementia are found to engage in more caregiving tasks than other physical chronic diseases and this was found to be linked to lower quality of life, higher anxiety, and depression (Gurayah, 2015).

References:

Gurayah, T. (2015). Caregiving for people with dementia in a rural context in South Africa. South African Family Practice, 57(3), 194–197. https://doi.org/10.1080/20786190.2014.976946