Cortijo-Palacios X, Ortiz AG, Cibrián-Llanderal T

Language: Spanish
References: 0
Page: 96-102
PDF size: 206.36 Kb.

ABSTRACT

Introduction: the primary caregiver is responsible for providing care for their sick relative. Caregivers of patients with serious illnesses bear a significant caregiver burden however, it is not clear if the stress caused by caring for a patient contributes to the origin of affective disorders. Objective: to compare the prevalence of stress, anxiety, depression and caregiver burden in two populations of primary caregivers of psychiatric and terminal cancer patients. Method: descriptive, correlational, cross-sectional and observational study. Two groups of participants were formed, consisting of primary caregivers of psychiatric patients and cancer patients. Sociodemographic data were collected from both groups and for psycho-affective evaluation, the instruments were used: Beck anxiety and depression inventory, stress perception scale, Zarit Burden Interview and the Caregiver Strain Index. Results: a typical profile was obtained as reported for each population of caregivers. In the group of primary caregivers of patients with cancer, the presence of higher levels of stress, anxiety, depression and burden was observed with respect to the other group. Significant differences were found between the psycho-affective evaluations. Conclusions: factors such as time of care and the implementation of psychoeducation programs can influence in the prevalence of affective disorders such as stress, anxiety and depression in caregivers of patients with cancer and psychiatric disorders.