Informal care and psychiatric morbidity.
BACKGROUND
We aimed to examine and quantify the relationship between psychiatric morbidity and the provision of informal care in the community.


METHODS
The study involved a comparison of carers and non-carers in a mixed urban and rural community (Morecambe Bay Health Authority). Data were collected by postal survey for 4550 adults; 10.9 per cent of respondents were identified as carers. Subjects were selected by quasi-random methods from the Family Health Services Authority (FHSA) registers. Potential psychiatric morbidity was defined as three or more symptoms on a standardized measure, the General Health Questionnaire (12-item version).


RESULTS
The prevalence of morbidity was significantly higher in people who care for others in their own homes, even after adjustment for other known risk factors for psychiatric morbidity (odds ratio 1.51, 95 per cent confidence interval 1.11-2.05). In contrast, there was no significant relationship between morbidity and care outside the home in these data.


CONCLUSIONS
Health Authorities need to review support for carers and to consider ways to improve monitoring.
Horsley
S
S
Public Health and Health Professional Development Unit, University of Lancaster.
Barrow
S
S
Gent
N
N
Astbury
J
J
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D017028:Caregivers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003156:Community Mental Health Services; D004739:England / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008603:Mental Health; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D015995:Prevalence; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires