Factors Associated With Quality of Life of Family Caregivers of Dialysis Recipients

Abstract

Chronic kidney failure may contribute to the diminished quality of life of African American women who care for adults affected by the disorder. Few studies document the quality of life of these caregivers. For this descriptive correlational study, caregiver demographic, caregiver burden, depressive symptoms, family functioning, and quality-of-life self-report data from 75 African American women were extracted from an existing database. Ferrans’ Conceptual Model of Quality of Life guided the selection of study variables. Several significant associations were found. Caregiver education, employment status, marital status, and caregiver burden explained 63% of the variance in the caregivers’ quality of life. Findings support the need to explore further and design interventions to improve the quality of life of working African American women supporting individuals with chronic kidney failure.

Knowledge Requirements and Unmet Needs of Informal Caregivers of Patients with End-Stage Kidney Disease (ESKD) Receiving Haemodialysis: A Narrative Review

“…There was a significant relationship between caregivers’ level of education and care burden ( p < 0.001) meaning that higher educational attainment decreased caregiver burden and improved QoL [ 28 , 34 ]. Evidence contrary to these findings however were identified in that higher educational achievement was associated with lower QoL scores ( p = 0.31) [ 40 ].…”

“…In total 18 papers which reported empirical findings relating to knowledge, needs, and ability of informal carers to care for patients with ESKD receiving haemodialysis were included in this narrative review. Seven studies took place In Iran [ 3 , 8 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 ], whilst the remaining eleven studies were based on populations in Vietnam [ 16 ], China [ 33 , 34 , 35 ], India [ 36 , 37 ], Australia [ 38 ], Canada [ 39 ], United States of America [ 40 ], Jordan [ 41 ], and Turkey [ 41 ].…”

“…The included studies used a range of methodological approaches including interventional studies [ 29 , 35 ], qualitative studies [ 3 , 8 , 30 , 31 , 38 ], and quantitative studies [ 33 , 34 , 36 , 41 ]. The remaining studies were descriptive/analytical [ 28 , 37 , 40 , 41 ], a non-experimental cross-sectional study [ 16 ], correlational study [ 32 ], and secondary analysis of a survey [ 39 ]. Participant recruitment in the studies varied between 30 and 150 participants.…”

Investigating the relationship between quality of life and hope in family caregivers of hemodialysis patients and related factors

“…Another study that examined the quality of life and care burden of family caregivers of patients undergoing hemodialysis, showed there was a significant relationship between the number of daily hours of patient care and quality of life [ 27 ]. But in the study by Starks et al, Caregivers who cared for the patient undergoing hemodialysis for longer hours had a higher quality of life [ 28 ]. The reason for this inconsistency may be due to differences in the study population.…”

“…Living with a patient in a home is usually associated with a greater burden of care and reduced caregiver independence, and can lead to a decline in quality of life. But in the study by Starks et al, Caregivers who lived with the patient had a significantly higher quality of life [ 28 ]. The reason for this disparity may be due to differences in the research environment, including the existence of different cultural contexts.…”