title: Anxiety among informal hospice caregivers: an exploratory study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study examined the prevalence of clinically significant anxiety among informal hospice caregivers and identified the characteristics of caregivers who experienced anxiety of this severity.
  
  
  METHODS
  An exploratory secondary data analysis pooled from three separate studies of informal hospice caregivers (N = 433) was conducted. Researchers employed descriptive statistics to calculate anxiety prevalence and utilized logistic regression to model the associations between the covariates (i.e., caregiver characteristics) and anxiety.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Overall, 31% of informal hospice caregivers reported moderate or higher levels of anxiety. Caregivers associated with the research site in the Northwest were less likely to be anxious than those in the Southeast [χ2(3, N = 433) = 7.07, p = 0.029], and employed caregivers were less likely to be anxious than unemployed caregivers (OR = 0.56, 95% CI = 0.33, 0.96). The likelihood of being anxious decreased with increasing physical quality of life (OR = 0.77, 95% CI = 0.69, 0.85), and younger female caregivers were more likely to be anxious than male caregivers and older females (OR = 0.95, CI = 0.91, 0.99).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A noteworthy number of informal hospice caregivers experience clinically significant levels of anxiety. Increased efforts to screen and address anxiety in this population are recommended.
authors: Curtis W. & Ann H. Long Department of Family and Community Medicine,University of Missouri,Columbia,Missouri.
authors: Karla T
authors: KT
authors: Washington
authors: Department of Biobehavioral Nursing & Health Services,School of Nursing and Department of Biomedical & Health Informatics,School of Medicine,University of Washington,Seattle,Washington.
authors: George
authors: G
authors: Demiris
authors: Department of Psychosocial Nursing & Community Health,School of Nursing,University of Washington,Seattle,Washington.
authors: Kenneth C
authors: KC
authors: Pike
authors: Curtis W. & Ann H. Long Department of Family and Community Medicine,University of Missouri,Columbia,Missouri.
authors: Robin L
authors: RL
authors: Kruse
authors: Curtis W. & Ann H. Long Department of Family and Community Medicine,University of Missouri,Columbia,Missouri.
authors: Debra Parker
authors: DP
authors: Oliver
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001007:Anxiety / Q000209:etiology*; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005260:Female; D017051:Hospice Care / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D005791:Patient Care / Q000523:psychology*; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Anxiety; Caregivers; Family; Hospice care