Health Related Quality of Life of Family Caregivers of Dependent Elderly

Abstract

The world has witnessed unprecedented decrease in mortality rates over the past century, which led to dramatic increase in the global population. As a result of the dramatic decrease in the worldwide fertility rates and the progressive increase in the life span, the world witnesses a sustained change in the age distribution of the global population in a phenomenon called population aging. Elderly population is expected to double reaching 2.1 billion by 2050. Elderly are more susceptible to have NCDs which are a major determinant for functional disability. Disabled elderly are those who can't perform one or more of basic ADLs with their own. There is a universal recent trend wherein patients are discharged earlier from hospitals. This creates a great worldwide increasing need for family caregiver. Family caregivers face many challenges and reported higher burden and lower HRQoL scores than their non-caregiver counterparts. Many strategies should be implemented to alleviate stress and improve HRQoL of family caregivers.