Burn out in Caregivers of Patients with Stroke and its Related Factors

Most of stroke survivors become dependant to their families for their daily living. However, no attention has been paid to mental and physical status of the caregivers of stroke patients in Iran. The aim of this study was to determine the rate of burn out in caregivers of stroke patients, one and three months after the stroke. This was a cross-sectional study in which 140 caregivers of stroke patients were recruited to the study from a hospital in Arak. The caregivers completed the Zarit Burden Inventory in hospital, and one and three months after discharge. Most of the caregivers were spouses of the patients (70.71%; n= 95). The mean age of the caregivers was 57.1 years old. Of all caregivers, 30.71%, 48.57% and 20.71% suffered from mild, moderate and severe burn out, respectively at three months after the stroke. The caregivers’ burn out was significantly increased at the follow up measurement. The caregivers’ burn out was associated with the level of dependency and age of the patients, and also gender and relativity of the caregiver, and the time spent for daily care (p< 0.05). Care of patients with stroke causes caregivers to experience a sense of burn out. Age, level of patient’s dependency, gender, relativity, and the time spent on care are associated with the burnout. Appropriate interventions should be implemented to reduce such burn outs.