Hussain Rafat, Ahmad Danish, Malhotra Rahul, Geronimo Mary Ann
School of Medicine and Psychology, Australian National University, Canberra 0200, Australia.
Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore 169857, Singapore.
Healthcare (Basel). 2024 Oct 17;12(20):2072. doi: 10.3390/healthcare12202072.
Empirical evidence shows that many family carers, especially immigrants, experience considerable health disadvantages and poorer quality of life. Australia has a rapidly increasing multicultural population, officially referred to as Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) people. This paper explores similarities and differences in the carer profile and physical and mental health of CALD and non-CALD family carers.
A cross-sectional anonymous survey was conducted of self-reported family carers aged 18 years and older. Identical paper and online survey modes were provided to enable choice. Key variables included demographic and carer profile, diagnosed chronic physical health conditions, and validated scales such as CESD-12 and MOS-SF12, including derivative composite Physical and Mental Component Summary (PCS and MCS, respectively) scores. The sample comprised 649 participants (CALD = 347, non-CALD = 302). The analyses included univariate, bivariate, and multivariable linear regression analyses for three outcome variables: PCS, MCS, and CESD-12.
CALD carers were comparatively younger and married, and 54% had university-level education (29% in the gfvnon-CALD group). Women were primary carers in both groups (67.4% versus 72.2%). The weekly care hours were higher for non-CALD carers. Both groups had below population-referenced scores for mean PCS and MCS values. For CESD-12, non-CALD respondents had higher scores (17.5 vs. 11.2, < 0.022). Regression analyses showed significant differences for demographic, carer, and physical health variables across the three outcome variables.
Women have a higher domestic workload, which, when combined with high care hours, adversely impacts physical and mental health. The need for improved and culturally aligned care support systems is required.
实证证据表明，许多家庭照顾者，尤其是移民，面临着相当大的健康劣势和较差的生活质量。澳大利亚的多元文化人口正在迅速增长，官方称之为文化和语言多元化（CALD）人群。本文探讨了CALD和非CALD家庭照顾者在照顾者特征以及身心健康方面的异同。
对18岁及以上的自我报告家庭照顾者进行了一项横断面匿名调查。提供了相同的纸质和在线调查方式以供选择。关键变量包括人口统计学和照顾者特征、确诊的慢性身体健康状况，以及经过验证的量表，如CESD - 12和MOS - SF12，包括派生的综合身体和心理成分总结（分别为PCS和MCS）得分。样本包括649名参与者（CALD = 347，非CALD = 302）。分析包括对三个结果变量（PCS、MCS和CESD - 12）进行单变量、双变量和多变量线性回归分析。
CALD照顾者相对年轻且已婚，54%拥有大学学历（非CALD组为29%）。两组中女性都是主要照顾者（67.4%对72.2%）。非CALD照顾者的每周照顾时长更高。两组的平均PCS和MCS值均低于以总体人群为参照的分数。对于CESD - 12，非CALD受访者得分更高（17.5对11.2，<0.022）。回归分析显示，在这三个结果变量中，人口统计学、照顾者和身体健康变量存在显著差异。
女性承担着更高的家庭工作量，再加上较长的照顾时长，会对身心健康产生不利影响。需要改进并建立符合文化背景的护理支持系统。
