ABSTRACT
Objective:
To assess the quality of life and the burden of female caregivers.
Method:
Descriptive, cross-sectional, quantitative study carried out with 224 informal caregivers from March to July 2016. Three instruments were used: a characterization form for the caregiver, the WHOQOL-Bref questionnaire and the Zarit Burden Interview. The following tests were used: Cronbach’s Alpha, Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Kruskal-Wallis, Spearman and Mann-Whitney.
Results:
The mean age of caregivers was 51.8 years with a standard deviation of 13.7. They were predominantly married, had a low income and low level of education, were first-degree relatives, had been providing care for one to five years and presented some pathology. The associations of quality of life that presented statistical significance were: income, marital status, number of people living with the caregiver and time of care.
Conclusion:
The burden was negatively correlated with QOL, that is, the greater the burden, the more impaired will be the life of these caregivers.
Descriptors:
Caregivers; Women’s Health; Nursing; Family; Quality of Life