Caregiver overload and factors associated with care provided to patients under palliative care.
Alice Regina Felipe Silva, Jack Roberto Silva Fhon, Rosalina Aparecida Partezani Rodrigues and 1 others
PMID 33687814WHAT IT FOUND
Home palliative care caregivers reported a mean overload score of 28.8 on a 0 to 88 scale.
Female caregivers, more days of care, and depressive symptoms were associated with higher burden. This was a cross-sectional survey, so it shows association, not cause.
Key findings
01Caregivers had a mean Zarit Burden Interview score of 28.78 on a 0 to 88 scale, and the paper gives no cutoff point for interpreting that score.
02In the regression model, female caregiver status, number of days providing care, and total Beck depression inventory score were associated with higher caregiver overload.
03Escape/avoidance coping showed a significant positive correlation with caregiver overload (0.421, p<0.001).
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The sample was small: 40 caregivers from one home care service, so the findings cannot be generalised to other populations. The design was cross-sectional, so it can show associations at one time point but cannot show that any factor caused overload. The Zarit Burden Interview has no cutoff in this paper, so the mean score of 28.78 cannot be classified as mild, moderate, or severe. The paper reports an association with patient marital status, but the text and table point in different directions: the text says patients without a partner had more overload, while Table 3 shows a lower mean for patients without a partner (15.5) than with a partner (23.1). The database had inconsistent data, which hindered identifying and retrieving participants. No intervention was tested, so the study cannot tell nurses what will reduce caregiver overload.
Declared interests
The study was financed by an Institutional Program for Scientific Initiation Scholarships of the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (PIBIC-CNPq).
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that being female, spending more days in care, or having depressive symptoms causes caregiver overload. This was a cross-sectional survey of 40 caregivers, so it shows associations at one time point, not cause.