Understanding the Impacts of Caregiver Stress

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: Identifying risk factors associated with caregiver stress and suggesting methods for systematic caregiver screening for caregiver strain, depression, and anxiety. PRIMARY PRACTICE SETTING: Emergency department, primary care, and other health care settings. FINDINGS/CONCLUSIONS: Caregiver stress can lead to multiple negative outcomes including declines in physical health, increased mental health concerns, and overall decreased quality of life. Caregiver stress also leads to increased financial costs to the person, family, and health care systems, making it a public health issue. Recognizing caregiver stress is the initial step to identifying those in need of support and to providing quality care. Fortunately, caregiver stress can be prevented or reduced using a culturally competent multidimensional approach to addressing social determinants of health and unmet physical, psychological, and social/emotional needs of caregivers. IMPLICATIONS FOR CASE MANAGEMENT: Case management plays a critical role in assessing, educating, advocating, creating care plans, and advocating for both the caregiver and the care recipient.