Relationships Among Family Support, Health Status, Burnout, and the Burden of the Family Caregiver Caring for Korean Older Adults

The purpose of this study was to examine family support, health status, burnout, and the burden of the family caregiver caring for older Korean adults and the correlations among them. The participants were composed of a total of 267 family caregivers caring for Koreans aged 65 years or older. The Family Support Scale was used to measure family support. The Cornell Medical Index-Simple Korean Form was used to measure the health status. The Burnout Scale was used to examine burnout. The Burden Scale was used to examine the level of burden. Data were analyzed using the statistical package, SPSS/WIN version 16.0. The health status of family caregivers caring for older Korean adults was low. The burnout and burden among them were moderate. Also, there were significant correlations among family support, health status, burnout, and the burden of the family caregiver caring for older Korean adults. This cross-sectional study provides preliminary evidence that nursing interventions aimed at improving the health status and decreasing the burden and subsequent burnout of family caregivers caring for older Korean adults are needed.