Estilo de vida de cuidadores informales de pacientes con discapacidad en un hospital de Guayaquil, 2023.

Abstract

Informal caregivers of patients with disabilities are a group of the population that generally does not have a significant or priority role in public health care; however, these people apply care that ranges from basic to semi-complex and are exposed to consequences that range from mild to severe, affecting their physical and psychosocial integrity.Objective: Analyze the lifestyles of informal caregivers of patients with disabilities in a hospital in Guayaquil, 2023. Methodology: Descriptive, quantitative, non-experimental, prospective and transversal, the sample was 100 informal caregivers, the FANTASTIC Questionnaire was used to measure the level of lifestyles. Results: It was found that 68% were women, 59% were between 18 and 29 years old, 82% were single and 55% had completed university; 32% were the patient's father/mother, 55% were in the caregiver's home, 77% had been caring for between 1 to 5 years, 27% cared 3 days a week and 41% from 1 to 4 hours, 50% expressed stress and 23% high blood pressure, the main disability of the patients was physical with 59% and 70% had between 50% - 75% percentage of disability; while 42% had regular lifestyles and only 7% enjoyed excellent lifestyles. Conclusion: The lifestyles of informal caregivers presented alterations as a consequence of caregiving circumstances and the high demand for time required by a patient with disabilities.