Burden and Depression among Primary Caregivers of Patients with Psychosis

Abstract

Caregiving is a full-time unpaid job with its own set of challenges. A caregiver of a patient with psychosis may go through a lot of psychological, emotional, and social demands. It aims to study the correlation of burden, depression, patient symptom severity, and sociodemographic factors (such as caregiving hours, financial strain, or relationship of the caregiver with the patient) all in one study. Method: The study utilized a cross-sectional design with purposive sampling. The study included 110 participants, with an equal number of genders, i.e., 55 males and females each. Caregiver burden was assessed using Zarit Burden Interview, level of depressive symptom was assessed using the Beck Depression Inventory-1, and psychosis patient severity was assessed using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale. All were statistically analyzed using SPSS. Results: The caregivers experienced moderate to high levels of burden and mild to moderate levels of depressive symptoms. There was a significant positive correlation between patient psychotic symptom severity, burden, and depressive symptoms. Female caregivers had significantly higher levels of burden and depression, but the gender difference in depression was not statistically significant. An association was seen between socio-demographic factors such as long caregiving hours, financial strain, and lower education level and greater caregiver distress. Conclusion: The significant association between caregiver burden and depression as well as other sociodemographic factors emphasizes the need for careful, gender-sensitive screening of caregiver mental health in a psychological or psychiatric setting.