[Caring for patients with chronic diseases within the family. Psychosocial stress and satisfaction of nursing women]

Abstract

This study examines the situation of female informal caregivers and its effect on their psychosocial well-being and strain. Data was gathered through interviews and questionnaires from women (N = 30) providing care for a chronically disabled relative in their household. Caregivers were mostly married, nonworking, middle aged daughters or daughters-in-law of the disabled. They reported a great amount of stress accompanied with depression and psychosomatic symptoms above-average. Eleven main stress factors could be identified. "Limitations of one's own life", "being bound to the house" and the specific "behavior or condition of the disabled" are the most frequent categories among them. The correlative results indicate that the worse the perceived health of the carereceiver the more depression and psychosomatic symptoms the caregivers report. Moreover, younger caregivers show higher strain levels than older ones. This and other findings suggest that women's multiple role experiences may account for their psychological well-being as a caregiver.