ABSTRACT
Family caregivers' role in cancer and stroke care is overly burdensome. Studies have considered burden and predictors of burden but the influence of caregiving burden on health - promoting behaviours among cancer and stroke family caregivers in Nigeria is scarce. The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of caregivers' perceptions of burden and health-promoting behaviours on informal caregivers of cancer/ stroke patients attending tertiary care facilities in South- South Nigeria. A descriptive cross-sectional survey was employed among 410 purposively selected cancer/ stroke patients' family caregivers in tertiary care facilities, South- South Nigeria. A standardized Zarit burden interview scale and structured questionnaire were used to measure burden and determine health-promoting behaviours respectively. Descriptive (means, standard deviation and percentages) and inferential (ANOVA) statistics with a Fisher's protected t- test at 0.05 level of significance were used for data analysis. The respondents experienced severe (F= 14.02; P= 0.810) burden in caregiving to cancer/ stroke patients. The influence of health- promoting behaviours (primary, secondary and tertiary preventions) among caregivers of cancer/ stroke is significantly high in the tertiary care facilities, South-South, Nigeria. Caregivers of cancer and stroke patients experienced severe levels of burden and health-promoting-behaviours in terms of prevention at the primary, secondary and tertiary activities were significantly high among respondents. This calls for knowledge mobilization and dissemination in Nigeria and beyond.
Subject(s)
Humans , Cost of Illness , Delivery of Health Care , Caregivers , StrokeABSTRACT
Aim: A descriptive survey was undertaken to ascertain nurses' awareness and level of practice of health promotion among women in Calabar. Background: Women's health is affected by array of factors; nurses could have a major impact in increasing women's capacity to exercise increased control over their lives and determinants of health. Method: One hundred and thirty six nurses drawn from the ante-natal clinics of primary; secondary and tertiary health facilities in Calabar participated in the study. A questionnaire with a content validity index of 0.91 was used for data collection. The test-retest reliability coefficient of the questionnaire was (r) 0.79. Ethical issues were addressed. Data were analyzed with statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 15. Findings: Majority 110 (80.9) of the participants were highly experienced; 96 (70.6) were managers while only 52 (38.2) had 1st degree and above. Health education was the most mentioned strategy of health promotion by participants 136 (100.0) while specific protection was the least mentioned 3(2.2). Only about half of the respondents 68 (50.0) practiced health promotion appropriately. Nurses' rank and years of working experience were significantly associated with appropriate practice. Conclusion: Nurses averagely practice health promotion. It was therefore recommended that Nurse Managers should provide learning opportunities to fill observe gaps in knowledge and motivate junior nurses to engage in women's health promotion at every opportunity