Background
Caregivers of the elderly with chronic illnesses are exposed to the burden associated with their caregiving activities. This study described the lived experience of caregivers of older adults in Nigeria.
Methods
A qualitative design guided by interpretive phenomenology informed the design of the research, whereby 15 in-depth interviews were conducted with caregivers of older adults with chronic illnesses. The interview sessions were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim and analysed using constant comparison analysis method.
Results
Fifteen caregivers, from different parts of Osun State, Nigeria, took part in the in-depth interviews. The caregivers were aged between 19 and 70 years, ten were women, five of them had secondary education, seven were self-employed and six were in a spousal relationship. The study uncovered four interrelated themes with explanatory subthemes—commitment to preservation of life (
man
aging
challenges associated with daily routine, problem with mobility, bathing and grooming, feeding, and problem with hygiene
) (ii) denial (
refusal to accept that burden exists)
, other things suffer (
disruption of family process, suffering from poor health and social isolation
), (iv) reciprocity of care (
pride in caregiving, caregiving as a necessity and not by choice, and law of karma
).
Conclusion
This study provides insight into the burden of care of older adults with chronic illness. Caregivers’ commitment to preserving life makes them provide assistance whose performance even run contrary to their own wellbeing. Intervention programme should be designed to support the caregivers thereby improving their wellbeing.
Introduction Death and the dying experience are common phenomena in all clinical settings. Death and the dying presents physical and emotional strain on the dying patient, his relations and professional caregivers. Objective The study therefore assessed the sociodemographic determinants of nurses’ attitudes towards death and caring for dying patient. Method A cross–sectional design was used to study 213 randomly selected nurses, working in one of the tier one teaching hospital in Nigeria. Attitude towards death and the dying was collected with Frommelt Attitude Care of the Dying and Death Attitude Profit–Revised questionnaire. The data collected was analysed with SPSS version 20 and inferential analyses were considered statistically significant at p < 0.05. Results The study revealed that most of the nurses had negative attitudes toward the concept of death (76.5%) and caring for dying patient (68%). Furthermore, a chi-square test revealed significant associations between the nurses’ years of working experience (χ2 = 24.57, p <.00) and current unit of practice (χ2 = 21.464; p = .002) and their attitude towards caring for the dying patient. Also, nurses’ age (χ2 = 13.77, p = .032), professional qualifications (χ2 = 13.774, p = .008), and current ward of practice (χ2 = 16.505, p = .011) were significantly associated with their attitudes to death. Furthermore, the study observed a significant association between nurses’ attitudes to death and caring for the dying patient (χ2 = 11.26, p < 0.01). Conclusion This study concluded that nurses had negative attitudes towards death and dying and therefore prescribes, as part of continuing professional development strategy, the need for requisite positive value – laden, ethnoreligious specific education regarding end of life care.
In recent years, thousands of people have been displaced due to conflict and have been forced to live in crowded camps. The study assessed the common health problems, health needs and healthseeking behaviours of internally displaced persons in Nigeria. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive design was used to study 240 randomly selected respondents using an interviewer-administered semi-structured questionnaire. Data collected were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistical techniques. Results: The prevalence of communicable disease outbreak was 59.2% and common health problems of the IDPs were malaria (97.9%), cold and catarrh (65.8%), heart diseases (56.7%), and diarrhoea (53.3%). Findings also revealed that access of IDPs to potable water, insecticide-treated nets (ITN), blankets and health care facility, as well as waste disposal, were generally poor. A large proportion of the respondents reported overcrowding (45.8%), inconducive housing (94.6%), dirty environment (54.6%) and poor food distribution (90%) in the camp. Furthermore, factors that predicted poor health among the IDPs include: educational status (OR: 0.397, p = 0.010), poor water supply (OR: 0.343, p = 0.006), hand washing (OR: 7.064, p = 0.004), and overcrowding (OR: 0.055, p = 0.001). Conclusion: This study concluded that ccommon health problems among the IDPs were malaria, cold and catarrh, heart diseases and diarrhoea and their health needs include lack of access to potable water and inadequate health care services. .
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