Samantha M Loi1,2,3, Briony Dow2, Kirsten Moore2, Keith Hill4, Melissa Russell5, Elizabeth Cyarto2, Sue Malta2,6, David Ames2, Nicola Lautenschlager1,7. 1. Academic Unit for Psychiatry of Old Age, Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Kew, Victoria, Australia. 2. National Ageing Research Institute, Parkville, Victoria, Australia. 3. Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Unit, Melbourne Health, The Royal Melbourne Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia. 4. School of Physiotherapy and Exercise Science, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia. 5. Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia. 6. Swinburne Institute for Social Research, Swinburne University, Hawthorn, Victoria, Australia. 7. School of Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences and the Western Australia Centre for Health and Aging, University of Western Australia, Perth, Victoria, Australia.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Depression is an adverse outcome frequently seen in carers. With the increasing ageing population and reliance on informal carers, this study aims to identify factors associated with depression in carers in the older age group, using factors that have not been previously investigated. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of 202 older carers using the Geriatric Depression scale, demographics, personality traits, attitudes to ageing and other carer characteristics. RESULTS: Increased hours spent caring and higher levels of neuroticism were all factors associated with depression. The care-recipient diagnosis, other personality traits, attitudes to ageing, leisure-physical activity (PA) and domestic-PA were not significantly associated with depression. CONCLUSIONS: These findings have important implications for interventions to target at-risk carers.
OBJECTIVE: Depression is an adverse outcome frequently seen in carers. With the increasing ageing population and reliance on informal carers, this study aims to identify factors associated with depression in carers in the older age group, using factors that have not been previously investigated. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of 202 older carers using the Geriatric Depression scale, demographics, personality traits, attitudes to ageing and other carer characteristics. RESULTS: Increased hours spent caring and higher levels of neuroticism were all factors associated with depression. The care-recipient diagnosis, other personality traits, attitudes to ageing, leisure-physical activity (PA) and domestic-PA were not significantly associated with depression. CONCLUSIONS: These findings have important implications for interventions to target at-risk carers.