Specifying caregiver outcomes: gender and relationship aspects of caregiving strain.

The gender-specific kinship relationship of patients and their care providers has not generally been investigated in studies of caregiver burden and well-being. In this study of 183 heart patient-caregiver dyads, gender and relationship were analyzed singly and jointly with respect to the process and outcome of caregiving. Strains caregivers experienced while caring for older heart patients six weeks and one year after hospital discharge were determined. Findings showed consistent patterns of strain. Women, nonspousal caregivers, and daughters, in particular, experienced the most severe aftereffects. These findings support a caregiving outcomes model proposing that the patient-caregiver relationship is an essential component of caregiver strain.