Abstract
BackgroundWe examined the associations of informal (eg, family members and friends) and formal (eg, physician and visiting nurses) social support with caregiver’s burden in long-term care and the relationship between the number of available sources of social support and caregiver burden.MethodsWe conducted a mail-in survey in 2003 and used data of 2998 main caregivers of frail older adults in Aichi, Japan. We used a validated scale to assess caregiver burden.ResultsMultiple linear regression demonstrated that, after controlling for caregivers’ sociodemographic and other characteristics, informal social support was significantly associated with lower caregiver burden (β = −1.59, P < 0.0001), while formal support was not (β = −0.30, P = 0.39). Evaluating the associations by specific sources of social support, informal social supports from the caregiver’s family living together (β = −0.71, P < 0.0001) and from relatives (β = −0.61, P = 0.001) were associated with lower caregiver burden, whereas formal social support was associated with lower caregiver burden only if it was from family physicians (β = −0.56, P = 0.001). Compared to caregivers without informal support, those who had one support (β = −1.62, P < 0.0001) and two or more supports (β = −1.55, P < 0.0001) had significantly lower burden. This association was not observed for formal support.ConclusionsSocial support from intimate social relationships may positively affect caregivers’ psychological wellbeing independent of the receipt of formal social support, resulting in less burden.
Highlights
Descriptive statistics showed that caregivers who were female, earning more income, caring for a longer duration, and having a sub-caregiver were more likely to report having at least one informal social support
Caregivers who were not cohabitating with care recipients, who had longer average daily caregiving time, and who had a sub-caregiver were more likely to report having at least one formal social support (Table 1)
Multiple linear regression showed that, after adjusting for covariates listed in Table 2, caregiver burden score was 1.59 points lower among those with at least one informal social support compared to those without informal social support (P < 0.0001)
Summary
In 2012, there were approximately 5.3 million adults eligible for the public LTC insurance benefit and potentially requiring LTC.[9] Reducing the burden of family caregivers is especially important in Japan because of the strong social norm of caring for all family members within the family, stemming from Japanese traditional values regarding family conception.[3,10] A government survey reported that approximately 60% of family caregivers cohabitating with older people in their care felt worries and stress.[11]. We examined the associations of informal (eg, family members and friends) and formal (eg, physician and visiting nurses) social support with caregiver’s burden in long-term care and the relationship between the number of available sources of social support and caregiver burden. Results: Multiple linear regression demonstrated that, after controlling for caregivers’ sociodemographic and other characteristics, informal social support was significantly associated with lower caregiver burden (β = −1.59, P < 0.0001), while formal support was not (β = −0.30, P = 0.39). Conclusions: Social support from intimate social relationships may positively affect caregivers’ psychological wellbeing independent of the receipt of formal social support, resulting in less burden
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