https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3134-7133
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ABSTRACT
Objectives
To analyze caregivers’ perceived impact of the pandemic in their mental health and the well-being of the care-recipients.
Methods
Caregivers (N = 88) were asked if they had COVID-19 and about their perceptions of change of care-recipients’ health conditions as well as whether their own mental health, conflicts with care-recipients and other relatives, thoughts of giving up caregiving, and feelings of coping well with the situation.
Results
A large percentage of caregivers perceived a worsening of care-recipients’ symptoms and of their own negative emotions, an increase in the number of conflicts and thoughts of needing to give up caregiving. Having had COVID-19 and reporting higher levels of distress as well as giving up caregiving were related to perceived worsening in care-recipients well-being. Perceived increases were mainly reported by younger caregivers, those who perceived to have not coped well, and those reporting an increase in conflicts. Some caregivers perceived an increase in positive emotions.
Conclusions
The pandemic has a negative impact on caregivers’ perceptions about the course of their own emotions and care-recipients’ well-being.
Clinical implications
Interventions are needed to train caregivers in strategies to cope with the sources of stress caused by the pandemic and to promote social support.
KEYWORDS:
Clinical implications
The COVID-19 pandemic has a negative impact in caregivers and care-recipients health and well-being.
Younger caregivers, those who consider that are not coping well with the caregiving situation, and caregivers with higher levels of depressive and/or anxiety symptoms are especially vulnerable to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on their mental health and that of their care-recipients.
Interventions aimed at training caregivers in strategies to cope with the additional sources of stress that the pandemic causes and to promote social support may be especially needed.
Acknowledgments
We thank all the family caregivers of people with dementia that have participated in the study. We also thank the Neurology Service of the Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, the Centro de Especialidades Hermanos Sangro, and the Dirección General del Mayor of the Madrid City Council (especial thanks to Pilar Serrano and her team) for their help in the sample recruitment. Preliminary data and ideas of this work were presented at the Mapfre Foundation Academic Workshop on Aging and COVID-19, held in Madrid (Spain) in December 2020.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).