Economic Burden of Family Caregiving for Elderly Persons with Chronic Diseases Attending Tema General Hospital

Abstract

Background In Ghana the population of the elderly is gradually increasing. The elderly are more prone to chronic diseases and frailty which put them in a situation to require caregiving. The caregivers usually family, become burden as a result. The economic burden associated with providing such care on family caregivers in Ghana has not been given the needed attention. The study objective was to estimate the economic burden of family caregiving for the elderly persons with chronic diseases attending Tema General Hospital. Method A retrospective cross-sectional study, using cost-of illness approach was conducted among family caregivers accompanying their care recipients to Tema General Hospital. A systematic random sample of 193 respondents was completed in an interviewer-administered questionnaire. The direct cost of caregiving (both health care cost and other care related costs) was estimated as the total out-of-pocket cost of care for a month prior to the time of the interview. Estimation of indirect cost of caregiving was done by the human capital approach which measures the economic value of a person’s skill set. Intangible costs/burden was described using the 12-item Zarit burden interview (a likert scale) and financial cost dimension of cost of care index. Results The average cost of family caregiving per respondent for the elderly with chronic diseases for a month was estimated at GHS1892.07 (US$433.96). This consisted of 74.8% (GHS 1416.19 = US$324.81) being direct cost and 25.2% (GHS475.88 = US$109.15) being indirect cost. Two-thirds (64%) of the respondents considered family caregiving for the elderly with chronic diseases as a high level burden and females experience higher burden compared to their male counterparts. Furthermore, about 70% of the family caregivers reported a high financial stress as a result of providing care for the elderly relatives with chronic diseases. Conclusion The economic burden of care on families require attention from policy makers to put in place policies and programmes to address the financial burden of the caregivers in order to sustain their ability and fortitude to continue providing support and care for the elderly.