Article
Health and wellbeing of informal caregivers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany: findings from a representative cross-sectional study
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Authors
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Larissa Zwar
- Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf, Institut für Gesundheitsökonomie und Versorgungsforschung, Hamburg, Deutschland
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Hans-Helmut König
- Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf, Institut für Gesundheitsökonomie und Versorgungsforschung, Hamburg, Deutschland
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Andre Hajek
- Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf, Institut für Gesundheitsökonomie und Versorgungsforschung, Hamburg, Deutschland
| Published: | September 27, 2021 |
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Outline
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Background and status of (inter)national research: Informal caregivers are an essential sector of the German health care system. During the COVID-19 pandemic, this group has been primarily responsible for supporting the main high risk group – older persons with health- or age-related impairments. The challenge of this new situation can be expected to impact the health and psychosocial wellbeing of these caregivers. Yet, informal caregiving has not been given much political or research interest in the context of this pandemic. Only few studies have been conducted, which mostly used qualitative designs and/or non-representative samples.
Question and objective: This study uses a population-based nationally representative sample to analyze
- 1.
- the mental health, social integration and social support of informal caregivers compared to noncaregivers during the COVID-19 pandemic, and
- 2.
- to analyze the role of the perceived danger and impairment due to the pandemic in this context.
Method: A representative sample (N=3022) of persons aged ≥40 years from Germany, drawn from forsa’s online panel (forsa.omninet), was questioned online during March 2021. Participants were asked if they provided informal care for individuals aged ≥60 years during the pandemic. Well-established scales were used to question all participants on their mental health (e.g., PHQ-9, GAD-7), their social support network (Lubben’s social network scale), and their loneliness and social isolation. The questions focused on the second pandemic wave in Germany (December 2020 to March 2021). Multiple regression analysis adjusted for sociodemographic data (e.g. age, gender, education, employment status) and health were conducted.
Results: Findings indicate significant higher levels of depressive and anxiety symptoms and a stronger social network among informal caregivers compared to non-caregivers, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Loneliness and social exclusion did not differ between both groups. Perceived impairment by the pandemic moderated this difference, with caregivers with higher levels of perceived impairment reporting a stronger social network.
Discussion & practical implications: Informal caregivers are the main care providers for the high risk group of older persons during the COVID-19 pandemic; a situation that is already challenging under normal circumstances. Our results give evidence to the urgent need for policy implementations and adequate support that is focusing specifically on this group. More adequate and flexible formal support measures, more information on the dangers and protective actions as well as better communication of these, are seen as feasible, necessary actions that could help to mitigate the impact of the current and future health crises on this essential sector of the health care system.
Appeal for practice (science and/or care) in one sentence: Research and practice should focus more on the informal care situation and provide flexible and needs-oriented support and information during this challenging time.
