Questionnaire Survey on Burden of Medication Assistance to Caregiver / 社会薬学

ABSTRACT

Generally, the adults can manage their own medications of prescribed drugs. However, medication assistance may be required in the elderly. The family plays a medication assistance, in home, which is afraid to be a burden on the family. In this study, we performed questionnaire survey to caregiver using our day-service center so that we study the actual situation of the medication assistance. From the result of the survey, 64% of caregivers were older than 60 years old. Sixty six percents of caregivers felt some kind of burdens for management of medicine, and 70% felt a burden for medication assistances. The multiple regression analysis showed that “the burden about management of the medicine” and “the degree of medication assistances” significantly affected a sense of the burden about medication assistances (p<0.01). In addition, from the free comment on the questionnaire, it was considered that some caregivers foster a sense of the burden about medication assistances by their strong sense of mission. From these results, it is shown that many caregivers felt a burden on medication assistance. It is suggested that the intervention of pharmacists can be reduce the burden of medication assistance.