Quality of life, mental health, and family functioning of schizophrenia caregivers: A community‐based cross‐sectional study

Abstract

The caregivers of people with schizophrenia might suffer from various problems. We investigated the prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress among them, and factors associated with their quality of life. A cross-sectional study in communities of rural areas was conducted. We found that the prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress were 14.2%, 25.5%, and 6.6%, respectively. Their quality of life was independently associated with family functioning (affective responsiveness, problem solving, communication) and the presence of depressive symptoms (p < .05). Schizophrenia caregivers need more supports from health care professionals to improve their skills in problem solving.

Changes in family functioning among primary family caregivers of patients with schizophrenia

“…Overall, more than half of primary family caregivers viewed their families as functioning in unhealthy ways, indicating impaired family functioning during the 6‐month post‐discharge period. This finding supported the existing cross‐sectional research indicating that family functioning was impaired in families of members with schizophrenia (Caqueo‐Urízar et al, 2017; Hsiao et al, 2020; Khatimah et al, 2022). In this study, primary family caregivers were middle‐aged and more than half of them were female which was similar to prior work (Hoseinzadeh et al, 2022;Hsiao et al, 2020; Yu et al, 2020).…”

“…Family functioning is defined as an outcome in which family members work together to adapt to life challenges and meet individual members' needs (McCubbin & McCubbin, 1993). Existing cross‐sectional research has indicated that family functioning is decreased among primary family caregivers of individuals with schizophrenia (Hoseinzadeh et al, 2022; Hsiao et al, 2020; Khatimah et al, 2022). A 2‐year longitudinal study of 100 families with individuals experiencing psychosis showed that high levels of criticism from family caregivers significantly predicted patient relapse (Koutra et al, 2015).…”

Family functioning and personal growth in Italian caregivers living with a family member affected by schizophrenia: Results of an add-on study of the Italian network for research on psychoses

“…In line with the stress theory, increased duration of illness and care negatively impact on caregivers who experience high levels of stress, perceiving an enforced restriction on their ability to function effectively or having most of their day taken up by caring for their ill relative (5)(6)(7)(8)(9)(10). In addition, functioning difficulties in the family may lead to increased stress in caregivers (11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16), to lack of appropriate strategies to treat symptoms manifested by the sick relative, and financial problems (17). Conversely, the mental health of caregivers may be preserved by working outside the home, generating income, maintaining activities unrelated to their role as caregiver and pursuing personal life goals (5).…”

Brain-gut axis and psychiatric disorders: A perspective from bibliometric and visual analysis

“…Psychiatric disorders often involve substantial disturbances in cognition, emotional regulation, or behavior, and are associated with a huge disease burden ( 10 – 13 ). Among these disorders, anxiety and depression are among the most common ( 10 , 14 , 15 ), affecting 301 million and 280 million people worldwide, respectively ( 16 ). Previous studies have found that the global burden of psychiatric disorders accounts for 32.4% of years lived with disability and 13.0% of disability-adjusted life-years ( 17 ).…”