European Journal of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences

CAREGIVING ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION: THE ROLE OF DEMOGRAPHICS AND CAREGIVING CHARACTERISTICS

Henry Egbuchiem*, MD, Adeleye A. Adaralegbe, PhD, Khuzeman Abbasi, MD,
Evaristus Chinonye Ezema, MD, MSc, FMCA, Maureen G. Boms, MBBCh, MPH,
Nnenna Ann Ukoha, BSc, MBBS and Akepzi Oshobe, MD.

ABSTRACT

Medical advancement and recent improvement in health care services have led to an increase in the population of older adults worldwide. This increase resulted in a rise in the prevalence of chronic diseases which necessitates the need for caregiving. The numerous burdens of caregiving and the long-term effects of providing care are known, especially with respect to the development of anxiety and depression among caregivers. In addition to evaluating the influence of sociodemographic factors on caregiving, this study examined how the types of caregiving provided is associated with anxiety and depression. We analyzed data from the 3rd iteration (Cycle 3) of the Health Information National Health Survey Trends 5 (HINTS 5) representing a cohort of about 3439 respondents. A Pearson’s Chi square correlation was used to evaluate the bivariate relationship between respondents’ demographic information, caregiving characteristics, depression and anxiety. We used a multivariable logistic regression model to examine the relationship between statistically significant predictors with depression and anxiety. The goodness-of-fit of the multivariate model was then assessed using the Hosmer and Lemeshow Test.The mean age of respondents in the study is 56.93±16.9 years, of which anxiety and depression were significantly associated with younger age (OR=0.98, p <0.05), female gender (OR=1.67, p <0.05), being White (OR=1.74, p <0.05), earning less than $50,000, and being single/divorced/widowed. Even though provision of caregiving to individuals with multiple conditions, one’s child, and a friend were associated with anxiety and depression, caregiving for patients multiple conditions was the only significant predictor of depression and anxiety.This study sheds light on the influence of demographic factors on caregiving burden, with emphasis on mental health of caregivers. We hope that future policy developments would be geared towards better protecting caregivers and creating preventive measures based on already established factors to mitigate the development of anxiety and depression among caregivers.

Keywords: Caregiving, Depression, Anxiety, Elderly, Mental, Health.