The Psychological and Physical Health of Hospice Caregivers

Differential levels of stress in caregivers of brain tumor patients—observations from a pilot study

“…However, when looking at descriptive means, caregivers who attended college report more stress than those who have not, high school (0.277), college (0.879), and graduate school (0.710), indicating that caregivers with more education experience and report more stress. These data contradict other data for general cancer caregiver population, which indicate that lower levels of education correlate to higher stress [6,11]. When looking at the relationship between caregiver stress and education by tumor grade, despite educational level attained, caregivers of patients with grade I/II tumors report twice as much stress as their grade III/IV counterparts (0.56 vs 1.06).…”

“…Researchers have found that increased interference in the ability of caregivers to participate in activities they normally value resulted in increased levels of emotional distress for the caregivers [4,11,17]. Lower levels of education [4,16,17] and younger caregiver age [4,6,11] have also been found to correlate to higher levels of stress in caregivers. Furthermore, providing care for patients with dementia was found to positively correlate with stress levels [8].…”

“…Caregiving is also associated with a decline in the physical health of caregivers. Research has shown that spouses of patients with cancer experience high incidences of respiratory infections, hypertension, eating disorders, and poor health habits, as well as reduction in immune function [1,5,6,15]. One study that examined 392 familial caregivers reported that caregivers who experience mental or emotional strain associated with caregiving have a 4-year mortality risk that is 63% higher than that of control subjects [18].…”

Informal Hospice Caregiving: The Toll on Quality of Life

“…More research is needed to aid professional providers in clarifying how to predict who may be most susceptible to deteriorating quality of life related to caregiving responsibilities as well as which interventions are most effective. Suggestions for possible interventions include caregiver education, respite services, referral to psychological counseling, support groups, and measures to improve communication-some of which have already shown promise (Chentsova-Dutton et al, 2000;Demiris, Oliver, Courtney, & Day, 2007;Hudson, Hayman-White, Aranda, & Kristjanson, 2006). Meanwhile, the assurance that hospice is doing its best to relieve a loved one's suffering is also critical in treating the patient-family unit and may do much to decrease the stress felt by caregivers (Eues, 2007).…”

“…Overall, informal caregiver quality of life has been shown to be lower than the general population in multiple settings. However, there is evidence that if caregivers are adequately supported, a decrease in quality of life may not simply be inevitable (Chentsova-Dutton et al, 2000;Janda et al, 2007;Pinquart & Sorensen, 2007;Sorrell, 2007).…”