Browsing by Subject "caregiver burden"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    The Functional Ability of MCI and Alzheimer’s Patients Predicts Caregiver Burden
    (Hogrefe, 2019-03) Lara-Ruiz, Jose; Kauzor, Kaitlyn; Gonzales, Katie; Nakhala, Marina; Banuelos, Dayana; Woo, Ellen; Apostolova, Liana G.; Razani, Jill; Neurology, School of Medicine
    Research shows that caregivers of dementia patients experience burden and psychological distress, but it is unclear whether or not caregivers of individuals with cognitive impairments that do not meet a diagnosis for dementia also experience similar burdens and psychological problems. Sixty patients and their caregivers participated in this study designed to examine caregiver burden. The patients completed activities-of-daily-living tasks and several neuropsychological tests assessing memory, abstract reasoning, and language. Caregivers completed self-report measures assessing caregiver burden and psychological distress. Results revealed that the caregivers of patients with mild Alzheimer’s disease (mAD) reported greater physical burden and feelings of missing out on life compared to individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) caregivers. The mAD caregivers indicated greater depression and anxiety relative to MCI caregivers. Stepwise regression found that patient neuropsychological scores were worse predictors of caregiver burden than patients’ daily functioning. The conclusions of this study suggest that (1) caregivers of mAD are likely to experience more severe types of burden and psychological distress relative to caregivers of MCI patients, and that (2) patients’ daily functional abilities better predict caregivers’ burden and psychological distress than patients’ neuropsychological functioning. Study findings suggest that caregivers of those in the early stages of dementia, even in persons not yet meeting a diagnosis, experience psychological symptoms and burden, and that these caregivers’ experiences can be best predicted by the patients daily functional ability than by patients’ neuropsychological test scores.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Occupational Therapy in an Area Agency on Aging: Informing Caregiver Support and Fall Prevention Programming
    (2022-05-02) Brown, Victoria; Bednarski, Julie; Department of Occupational Therapy, School of Health and Human Sciences; Ziegler, Dustin; Stinson, Kelsey
    This paper details an occupational therapy doctoral capstone project at an area agency on aging. Based on a needs assessment, gap analysis, and literature review, the capstone student planned out a two-fold project. The student first addressed caregiver burden through the creation of an energy conservation handout. A survey found that most caregivers struggled with fatigue and pain, and they thought the information in the handout was relevant to caregiving. A vast majority also stated they were likely to apply the energy conservation strategies to caregiving and daily activities. The student then wrote a literature review to inform the implementation of CAPABLE, a fall/disability prevention program, at the area agency on aging. Based on the project evaluation, future capstone projects could include occupational therapy sessions with caregivers, caregiver workshops, education on environment modification for those with dementia, and supporting the implementation of CAPABLE.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Using a model of family adaptation to examine outcomes of caregivers of individuals with autism spectrum disorder transitioning into adulthood
    (Elsevier, 2018-10) Yu, Yue; McGrew, John H.; Rand, Kevin L.; Mosher, Catherine E.; Psychology, School of Science
    Background The study examined the burden of caring for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) transitioning from high school and factors associated with burden derived from the Double ABCX model of family adaptation (i.e., autism symptom severity, problem behaviors, pile-up life demands, personality traits, social support, cognitive appraisals, and coping strategies). In particular, we were interested in the potential association between the “big 5” personality traits and burden. Method Participants (N = 105) were caregivers of individuals with ASD within two years pre- or post-graduation from high school. Results Primary caregivers reported moderate levels of burden. As hypothesized, burden was significantly associated with both child (i.e., increased autism symptom severity and problem behaviors) and caregiver characteristics (i.e., greater neuroticism, lower levels of extraversion, conscientiousness, agreeableness, and social support, and increased use of threat appraisals and passive-avoidance coping strategies). Using multiple regression, increased child behavior problems and increased caregiver use of passive-avoidance coping were identified as independent predictors of burden. Passive-avoidance coping mediated the relationship between caregiver burden and individual personality traits (i.e., neuroticism, extraversion, conscientiousness). Conclusions The results suggest that proximal variables, such as caregivers’ use of maladaptive coping strategies, explain the associations between burden and personality. Suggestions for interventions to relieve burden are discussed.