The burden of informal caregiving in Hungary, Poland and Slovenia: results from national representative surveys

Eur J Health Econ. 2019 Jun;20(Suppl 1):5-16. doi: 10.1007/s10198-019-01058-x. Epub 2019 May 14.

Abstract

Background: We aimed to investigate the burden of informal care in Hungary (HU), Poland (PL) and Slovenia (SI).

Methods: A cross-sectional online survey was performed involving representative samples of 1000 respondents per country. Caregiving situations were explored; health status of informal caregivers/care recipients and care-related quality of life were assessed using the EQ-5D-5L and CarerQol-7D.

Results: The proportion of caregivers was (HU/PL/SI) 14.9, 15.0 and 9.6%, respectively. Their mean age was 56.1, 45.6 and 48.0, and the average time spent on informal care was 27.6, 35.5 and 28.8 h/week. Chronic care was dominant (> 1 year: 78.5%, 72.0%, 74.0%) and care recipients were mainly (own/in-law) parents. Average EQ-5D-5L scores of care recipients were 0.53, 0.49 and 0.52. For Poland and Slovenia, EQ-5D-5L scores of informal care providers were significantly lower than of other respondents. Average CarerQol-7D scores were (HU/PL/SI) 76.0, 69.6 and 70.9, and CarerQol-VAS was 6.8, 6.4 and 6.6, respectively. Overall, 89, 87, and 84% of caregivers felt some or a lot fulfilment related to caring. Problems with combining tasks with daily activities were most important in Hungary and Slovenia. Women had a higher probability of being a caregiver in Hungary. CarerQol-7D scores were significantly associated with caregivers' EQ-5D-5L scores. In Hungary and Poland, living in a larger household was positively, while caring for patients with mental health problems was negatively associated with CarerQol-7D scores.

Conclusions: These first results from the Central and Eastern European region using preference-based measures for the evaluation of informal care can serve as a valuable input for health economic analyses.

Keywords: CarerQol; EQ-5D-5L; Informal care; Quality of life.

MeSH terms

  • Activities of Daily Living
  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Age Factors
  • Aged
  • Caregivers / psychology*
  • Chronic Disease
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Europe, Eastern
  • Female
  • Health Status
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Mental Disorders / epidemiology
  • Middle Aged
  • Quality of Life*
  • Sex Factors
  • Socioeconomic Factors
  • Young Adult