Objective: It is known that caring for a person suffering from dementia is stressful. Certain aspects of caring can also be rewarding but little is known about them. The objective of the study was to identify activities enjoyed by patients and by their carers as part of caregiving, and to examine the relationship between the activities enjoyed and the psychological morbidity in the carers.
Design: Cross-sectional single group
Materials and Methods: 50 carers of patients suffering from dementia known to old age psychiatry services in Manchester, UK, were asked to complete the Pleasant Events Schedule which gives overall ‘enjoy’ score for activities in previous month. The relationship between the patients'/ carers' ‘enjoy’ scores for activities and the psychological morbidity in carer (General Health Questionnaire) was correlated with measures of cognitive functioning (Mini-Mental State Examination), depressive symptoms (Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia) and behavioral symptoms (Revised Memory and Behavior Problems Checklist).
Results: An interim analysis based on 23 patients showed an inverse relationship between GHQ scores of carers and ‘enjoy’ scores of patients (r = -0.47, p = 0.02) and ‘enjoy’ scores of carers as part of caregiving (r = -0.46, p = 0.05).
Conclusion: Based on the interim results, identifying and encouraging activities enjoyed jointly may be a useful carer intervention strategy to reduce strain on carers of patients suffering from dementia.
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