Relationships between income, subjective health and caregiver burden in caregivers of people with dementia in group living care: a cross-sectional community-based study.
BACKGROUND
Family caregivers of relatives with dementia report higher level of psychological distress than other caregivers and report their self-related health as poorer than that of comparison groups.


OBJECTIVE
The purpose of the study was to examine characteristics of family caregivers and to assess whether income, subjective health, age and relationship were associated with the burden of care they experienced.


METHODS
Group living units in southern Sweden.


METHODS
Fifty caregivers who served as informal caregivers of relatives with dementia in group living care.


METHODS
Interviews regarding economic and social conditions and well-evaluated scales for health and caregiver burden (CB) were used.


RESULTS
The majority of the family caregivers were adult children, and twice as many were female than were males. The investigation showed that total burden, strain and disappointment, adjusted for health and age, were related to income. Disappointment showed a relation to subjective health. The adult children showed a significantly higher degree of total burden, irrespective of age, compared to other family caregivers. Low income was associated with a higher degree of burden among adult children. However, elderly participants experienced less of burden than younger ones.


CONCLUSIONS
Our findings indicate that caregivers with low health profile and low income, especially adult children, are associated with higher CB.


CONCLUSIONS
People with coexisting risk factors (low income, low perceived health) are the ones who may benefit most from health-oriented interventions.
Andrén
Signe
S
Department of Health Sciences, Division of Geriatric Medicine, Lund University, Malmö University Hospital, SE-205 02 Malmö, Sweden. signe.andren@med.lu.se
Elmståhl
Sölve
S
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001294:Attitude to Health; D017028:Caregivers / Q000191:economics / Q000523:psychology*; D017281:Cost of Illness; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003704:Dementia / Q000191:economics / Q000451:nursing*; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D016352:Group Homes / Q000458:organization & administration; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden