Abstract

BackgroundWe aimed to estimate the monetary value of informal care of disabled people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Spain and to identify the main determinants of the time involved in informal caregiving.MethodsWe used the Survey on Disabilities, Autonomy and Dependency carried out in Spain in 2008 to obtain information on disabled individuals with COPD and their informal caregivers. Assessment of informal caregiving time was performed using the proxy good method. A statistical multivariate analysis (ordered probit model) was performed to study the determinants of informal care provided.ResultsIt was estimated that 220,892 disabled people with COPD received informal care. The total annual number of caregiving hours was 694.44 million, with an estimated monetary value between 4,981 and 8,254 million EUR. Based on the condition of having received informal care, the cost of informal care per disabled person with COPD ranged from 24,549 to 40,681 EUR per year (depending on the shadow price applied). This value varies significantly depending on the degree of dependency; it ranged from 17,089 EUR per person annually for non-dependents to 33,033 EUR for those who were greatly dependent (under the most conservative scenario). Degree of dependency and the formal care received were the main variables that explained the variability of informal caregiving time provided.ConclusionsThe results partially reveal the high hidden social costs, and the association between the level of dependency and the time provided by the caregivers. This information should be a useful tool to design policies that focus on improving caregivers’ well-being.

Highlights

  • We aimed to estimate the monetary value of informal care of disabled people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Spain and to identify the main determinants of the time involved in informal caregiving

  • That means that the data used was not specific for COPD population but for disabled people suffering from several disabilities and different diseases

  • According to the EDAD-08 survey, the number of disabled people aged 6 years or older living at home with one or more disabilities and with COPD totaled 461,884

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Summary

Introduction

We aimed to estimate the monetary value of informal care of disabled people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Spain and to identify the main determinants of the time involved in informal caregiving. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a progressive disorder characterized by the occurrence of episodes of acute exacerbation with a high burden of morbidity and mortality. It is a systemic and debilitating condition characterized by a progressive decline in the ability to perform basic activities of daily living (BADL) [1,2]. The frequency of exacerbations increases as the disease progresses to moderate and severe stages. It is associated with impaired physical, social, The worldwide prevalence of COPD is estimated to be nearly 1% of the total population.

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