Tokovska Miroslava, Šolcová Jana
Department of Health and Exercise, School of Health Sciences, Kristiania University College, Prinsens gate 7-9, 0152 Oslo, Norway.
Department of Social Work, Faculty of Education, Matej Bel University, Ruzova 11, 974 11 Banska Bystrica, Slovakia.
Healthcare (Basel). 2022 Dec 3;10(12):2441. doi: 10.3390/healthcare10122441.
The role and responsibilities of next-of-kin carers are significant, filling several years of their lives and causing them to experience a burden of care. This study was conducted to investigate the burden of next-of-kin carers for dementia sufferers in Slovakia. Data were compiled via the Relatives' Stress Scale (RSS) screening instrument through a survey of 112 primary next-of-kin carers and analysed using the statistical tests of descriptive statistics, means, scores and significance differences (Wilcoxon test). This is one of the few scales which provides: (a) specific measures of caregiver stress, and (b) is standardised for a population of informal carers in the home environment. The profiles of Slovak next-of-kin carers were identified with statistically significant characteristics (gender, age of carers). The study identified a high level of caregiving stress (82.15%), and selected factors were found to be significant in all burden dimensions: emotional stress ( = 0.001), social stress ( = 0.003), and negative feelings ( = 0.002). The results emphasise the need for coordination of healthcare and social services, possibly by expanding the network of social support groups, operating a counselling hotline/chat, and introducing national educational programmes for the next-of-kin carers of dementia sufferers. The results are also a source of reference for the umbrella organisation 'the Slovak Alzheimer's Society' to access when implementing changes at a national level.
近亲照顾者的角色和责任重大，占据了他们数年的生活，并使他们承受着照顾负担。本研究旨在调查斯洛伐克痴呆症患者近亲照顾者的负担情况。通过对112名主要近亲照顾者进行调查，使用亲属压力量表（RSS）筛选工具收集数据，并采用描述性统计、均值、得分及显著性差异（威尔科克森检验）等统计测试进行分析。这是少数几个能提供以下内容的量表之一：（a）照顾者压力的具体测量指标，以及（b）针对家庭环境中的非正式照顾者群体进行了标准化。确定了斯洛伐克近亲照顾者的特征，并具有统计学上的显著特点（照顾者的性别、年龄）。研究发现照顾压力水平较高（82.15%），并且在所有负担维度中，选定的因素都具有显著性：情绪压力（p = 0.001）、社会压力（p = 0.003）和负面情绪（p = 0.002）。研究结果强调了医疗保健和社会服务协调的必要性，可能的方式包括扩大社会支持团体网络、开通咨询热线/聊天服务，以及为痴呆症患者的近亲照顾者推出国家教育项目。这些结果也是伞状组织“斯洛伐克阿尔茨海默病协会”在国家层面实施变革时可供参考的依据。
