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This study aimed to evaluate the quality of life of stroke caregivers and analyze its association with the discharge readiness of both caregivers and patients. A total of 302 stroke patients and their primary caregivers were recruited from the neurology departments of three hospitals affiliated with Chengdu Medical College using a convenience sampling method. Sociodemographic data, the WHO Quality of Life Scale (WHOQOL-BREF), the Caregiver Preparedness Scale (CPS), and the Readiness for Hospital Discharge Scale (RHDS) were used. Statistical analyses included -tests, analysis of variance (ANOVA), Pearson's correlation analysis, and multiple linear regression. The overall mean quality of life of primary caregivers is 60.80±6.06, indicating a relatively low level. The mean readiness for discharge scores are as follows: caregivers: 17.66±2.67, indicating a moderate level; stroke patients: 78.17±8.16, indicating a relatively low level. A positive correlation was found between caregivers' quality of life and their own as well as the patients' readiness for discharge ( < 0.01). Multiple linear regression indicated four significant factors associated with caregiver quality of life: Patient's disease severity, Patient's readiness for discharge, Caregiver's readiness for discharge, and the Daily hours spent caregiving ( = 0.589, < 0.001). Caregivers' quality of life is generally low but can be improved by enhancing discharge readiness for both caregivers and patients.

Expressed emotion is an attitude, feeling, and emotional reaction of primary caregivers toward people with schizophrenia. High levels of expressed emotion in primary caregivers are linked to a higher relapse rate in those with schizophrenia than in families with low levels of expressed emotion. Despite the critical role of caregivers in the management of schizophrenia, there is limited research on their expressed emotions in eastern Ethiopia. To assess expressed emotions and associated factors among primary caregivers of people with schizophrenia receiving treatment at public hospitals in Harari Regional State and Dire Dawa Administrative City from June 1 to June 30, 2024. A hospital-based, cross-sectional study was conducted among 414 participants at public hospitals in Harari Regional State and Dire Dawa city Administrative. A systematic sampling method was used to select study participants. The expressed emotions were assessed via family questionnaires. Data entry and analysis were performed via Epi-Data 4.6 and STATA version 14, respectively. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression were used to evaluate the associations between independent and outcome variables. Variables with p values < 0.05 were considered statistically significant, and adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were used to determine the strength of the associations. The prevalence of highly expressed emotions in this study was 48.31% (95% CI 43.51–53.14%). A duration of caregiving of more than 8 years (AOR 2.74; 95% CI 1.02, 7.33), severity of illness (AOR 3.45; 95% CI 1.89; 6.28), severe burden (AOR 4.34; 95% CI 2.03, 9.28), perceived stigma (AOR 2.59; 95% CI 1.53, 4.41), and poor social support (AOR 3.54; 95% CI 1.74, 7.19) were significantly associated with highly expressed emotion. This study revealed that the prevalence of expressed emotion is significantly high. The duration of caregiving; perceived stigma, burden, and severity of illness; and social support of the study participants were significantly associated with expressed emotion. Promote policies that ensure better coordination of care between mental health professionals, primary care providers, and social services to create a more comprehensive care plan.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of family synchronous empowerment education on the caregiving ability and preparedness of primary caregivers, as well as the nutritional status and quality of life of patients who have undergone esophagectomy. A total of 102 patients who were treated with thoracoscopic radical resection for esophageal cancer and their primary caregivers from August 2023 to March 2024 were selected and evenly divided into a control group and an intervention group, with 51 cases in each group. The control group received standard nursing education, whereas the intervention group received additional family synchronous empowerment education. Both the preparedness and ability of the primary caregivers to provide care, as well as the nutritional status and quality of life of the patients, were assessed at admission and 1 month post‐discharge. Post‐intervention, the intervention group's primary caregivers demonstrated significantly improved caregiving ability and preparedness compared to the control group (p < .05). Similarly, patients in the intervention group exhibited significantly better nutritional status and quality of life than those in the control group (p < .05). The study concluded that the implementation of family synchronous empowerment education significantly enhances the caregiving ability and preparedness of primary caregivers and improves the nutritional status and quality of life in patients after esophagectomy.

Purpose Cancer caregiving, a critical component in the cancer-care model, has deleterious effects on the caregiver’s physical and mental health. The degree to which these negative effects are uniformly experienced by caregivers is unclear; effects may be exacerbated at the end of life when caregiving is intensified. Not all caregivers have the support of an additional involved support person (secondary caregiver). The impact of the secondary caregiver’s absence on the primary caregiver’s well-being is understudied. Methods Terminal cancer patient-caregiver dyads ( n  = 223) were recruited from oncology clinics and followed for six months or until patient death. Longitudinal latent growth models were used to characterize the heterogeneity of caregiver physical health and depressive symptoms; characteristics associated with these trajectories are examined. Results Caregivers were majority female (74%), white (55%) and patient spouses (60%). Two physical health (moderate, stable; initially good, declining) and two depressive symptom (moderate, stable; high, increasing) trajectories were identified. Declining physical health was more likely among caregivers who were healthiest at baseline, had higher levels of education, lower subjective burden, fewer depressive symptoms, cared for patients with fewer functional limitations and reported fewer caregiving tasks rendered by a secondary caregiver. Those with increasing depressive symptoms were more likely to be white, patient’s wife, have higher subjective caregiver burden, lower physical health, and care for a patient with greater functional limitations. Conclusions Decreasing physical health was evident among caregivers who were initially healthier and reported less assistance from secondary caregivers. Increasing depression was seen in white, female spouses with higher subjective burden. Sample heterogeneity revealed hidden groups unexpectedly at risk in the primary cancer caregiver role to which the oncology care team should be alert.

To explore burden and its related factors among primary caregivers of patients with cancer. This study was conducted in an oncology ward at a medical center in southern Taiwan. A total of 137 dyads of patients with cancer and their primary caregivers were recruited. This cross-sectional correlational study used a structured questionnaire to assess the burden of primary caregivers. Data on patients' basic characteristics and disease profiles were extracted from medical records from January to June 2019. Linear regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with the burden of primary caregivers. The majority of primary caregivers were female (70%) and aged younger than 65 years (85%). Overall, the mean primary caregiver burden score was 38.83 (SD = 12.86), with spiritual burden ranking highest among the four domains assessed. Factors related to overall primary caregiver burden included psychiatric symptoms, daily care hours, patient age, and the lack of rotational support. Hospice and oncology nurses can actively identify psychiatric symptoms in primary caregivers, targeting high-risk groups to provide timely resources or psychiatric referrals, aiming to alleviate future caregiver burden.

Depression is one of the most common psychological consequences of caregiving. Caring for patients with severe mental illness (SMI) adds significant challenges to family caregivers’ mental health. The purpose of this study was to describe the prevalence of depression among caregivers of SMI patients in rural areas of Sichuan province of China, to examine the influence of social support and care burden on depression, and to explore the intermediary effect of care burden between social support and depression among caregivers of SMI patients. Data were collected from 256 primary caregivers of SMI patients in rural Sichuan Province in China. We used structural equation modeling (SEM) to test the hypothesized relationship among the variables. We found that a total of 53.5% of caregivers had depression. Both care burden (β = 0.599, 95%CI: 0.392–0.776) and social support (β = −0.307, 95%CI: (−0.494)–(−0.115)) were directly related to depression, while social support had a direct association with care burden (β = −0.506, 95%CI: (−0.672)–(−0.341)). Care burden mediated the relationship between social support and depression. For the socio-demographic variables, gender, education level and per capita annual income of household had significant correlations with depression (p < 0.05). The results strongly demonstrated that social support and care burden were predictors of depression, especially social support. Policymakers should fully recognize the role of primary family caregivers in caring for SMI patients and promote interventions to decrease care burden and reduce caregivers’ depression by improving social support and network. More attention should be given to female caregivers and caregivers with lower education and lower household income levels.

Introduction Whilst caregivers are crucial in the treatment and recovery of patients, numerous studies have indicated that primary caregivers of adults with severe mental illnesses (SMI) face widespread stigmatisation and bear a significant burden. Nevertheless, research examining stigma and burden among primary caregivers of adults with SMI in developing nations remains scarce. Objectives The present study aimed to evaluate affiliate stigma amongst caregivers of adults with SMI at St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College (SPHMMC), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Methods A facility-based cross-sectional study design was applied. Systematic random sampling method was employed to recruit caregivers of adults with SMI ( n  = 398). The gathered information encompassed tools and structured questionnaires, including the family stigma scale, attitude toward mental illness questionnaire, family burden interview, Oslo 3-items social support scale, sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of both caregivers and patients, and caregiver burden. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression. Results Caregivers ( n  = 375) of patients with bipolar disorder (13.3%), anxiety disorders (21.9%), major depressive disorders (26.67%) and schizophrenia (37.3%) participated in the study. The response rate was 94.2%, with a proportional gender distribution among participants (female = 49.87%). The findings revealed that approximately half (54.9%) of the caregivers experienced or perceived stigma. The factors that were associated with stigma among caregivers were caregiving patients with schizophrenia (AOR: 1.91; 95% CI: 0.86, 4.2; p  = 0.003), attitude towards people with mental illness (AOR: 2.1; 95% CI: 1.23, 3.4; p  = 0.005), social support (AOR: 0.5; 95% CI: 0.30, 0.82; p  = 0.006), patient history of psychiatric admission (AOR: 0.32; 95% CI: 0.18, 0.57; p  < 0.0001) and superstitious belief (AOR: 0.28; 95% CI: 0.15, 0.52; p  < 0.0001). The findings also illustrated that a large proportion of caregivers (89%) had moderate to severe burden. Conclusions The study identified the high levels of stigma and burden faced by caregivers of adults with SMI, emphasizing the pressing need for interventions. These interventions should include psychoeducation and tailored support for caregivers, as well as efforts to enhance public awareness about mental health issues. Furthermore, the study identified that types of illness, social support, attitude towards people with mental illness, patient history of psychiatric admission, and superstitious beliefs are important determinants of stigma.

Background Informal caregivers play a fundamental role in the care of hematological cancer patients, but less is known about how secondary caregivers are involved. We assessed the presence or absence of a secondary caregiver, the types of caregiving activities performed by primary and secondary caregivers, and examined whether the presence of a secondary caregiver was associated with primary caregiver characteristics and well-being over time. Methods A case series of hematological cancer patient-caregiver dyads ( n  = 171) were recruited from oncology clinics in Virginia and Pennsylvania and followed for 2 years. Multilevel models were developed to examine the associations between the presence of a secondary caregiver and the primary caregivers’ well-being. Results Most (64.9%) primary caregivers reported having secondary caregivers. Multilevel models showed primary caregivers without help had higher baseline mental and physical health, but experienced deteriorating physical health over time, compared to supported primary caregivers. Supported primary caregivers reported improvements in mental health over time that was associated with improvements in physical health. Conclusions Primary caregivers in good physical and mental health at the beginning of their caregiving journey but who have the least assistance from others may be at greatest risk for detrimental physical health effects long term. Attention to the arrangement of caregiving roles (i.e., who provides what care) over time is needed to ensure that caregivers remain healthy and well supported.

Background: Cancer being characterized as a chronic illness not only affects the patient but also the person who provides care for them. The traumatic experience of its diagnosis poses both positive and negative changes among primary caregivers. Objective: Aim of this study was to determine the effect of caregiving-related rumination patterns on the positive and negative changes in primary caregivers of cancer patients in Pakistan. Study type, settings & duration: This cross-sectional study was conducted at National Institute of Psychology, Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad in collaboration with various hospitals of Rawalpindi and Islamabad from June to August 2023. Methodology: A sample size comprising 131 adults was considered in this study. After taking the informed consent, data were collected using the English versions of the Event Related Rumination Inventory and the Changes in Outlook Questionnaire, both with acceptable reliability. Data were analyzed using SPSS. Results: A total of 131 caregivers including 49 (37.40 %) males and 82 (62.60%) females with mean age of 33.4 years participated in this study. Intrusive rumination was found to positively predict negative changes (β=.66, p <.001) and negatively predict positive changes (β= -.43, p <.001). Additionally, deliberate rumination positively predicted the positive changes (β= .34, p <.001) and negatively predicted the negative changes (β= -.25, p <.001). Higher caregiver education and more time spent caring were positively associated with positive changes and deliberate rumination, while negatively associated with negative changes and intrusive rumination. Conclusion: Caregivers with unwanted thoughts face more negative changes, while those who reflect purposefully ...