Health-related quality of life in sandwich generation Iranian women

Background. Women play an important role in family caregiving, but there is inconclusive information about the effect of caregiving on women's quality of life. The contradictory effects of caregiving on the physical and emotional health of caregivers have been reported. Objectives. The main objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and multi-generational caregiving. Material and methods. This is a case-control study conducted in Ahvaz, Iran, on 360 family caregiver women: 180 women as sandwich generation caregivers who cared for family members in addition to caring for their own children, at least 21 hours per week for 6 months; and 180 women in the control group who only cared for their own children. Health-related quality of life was compared in the two groups. The two groups were matched regarding age, the number of children and socio-economic status. Data was analyzed using the chi-square test and ANCOVA test. Results. There was no significant difference between the sandwich generation and control groups in terms of the total score of health-related quality of life and its eight domains, as well as the scores of physical and mental health component summaries. Conclusions. It may be suggested that HRQoL is not negatively affected by sandwich generation caregiving in Iranian women. Cultural and religious factors prevent significant negative effects on health-related quality of life.