Management of Informal Caregivers’ Burden in a Selected Region of the Czech Republic

Abstract

Objective: Care of handicapped or elderly by the family members in the home environment brings not only many positives for the care recipients, but can also impose a significant burden on the caregiver. The goal of the study was to assess the caregiver burden, burnout syndrome and the effect of caregivers’ sociodemographic characteristics. Design: Cross-sectional study. Participants: The sample consisted of 168 caregivers who took care of disabled children or seniors. Methods: Zarit Burden Interview identifying the subjective burden of informal caregivers, and Maslach Burnout Inventory assessing the burnout syndrome were used. Results: A higher level of caregiver burden and the development of burnout syndrome occurring most frequently in the dimensions of Emotional Exhaustion and Personal Accomplishment was observed. The caregiver burden was found to be lower in men, in caregivers living alone, and in the respondents from higher income households; it increased with the weekly amount of care. Conclusions: The results proof the demanding nature of informal care. A longitudinal study could illuminate the temporal changes in the family dynamics.

Caregiver Quality of Life: Satisfaction and Burnout

“…Research on ICs of patients with different types of diseases showed that burnout is related to lower subjective health, social support, anxiety and depression, and lower QoL in all dimensions [ 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 ]. The scores for emotional exhaustion and personal accomplishment in the informal caregiving literature stand out in comparison with the scores of depersonalization [ 31 , 32 ]. Burnout is also related to negative consequences for the care recipient.…”