Caregiver Burden in Caring for Post-Cardiac Surgery Patients

Abstract

Post-cardiac surgery patients in recovery depend on caregivers to meet their physical needs because of weakness and reduced physical ability. Caregivers provide care, including assistance in meeting daily needs, self-care, and socializing in the environment. Many caregivers feel unprepared to assume the burden and demands of care on patients. This study aimed to describe the caregiver burden in caring for post-cardiac surgery patients. The research design was quantitative descriptive with an accidental sampling technique with a sample size of 23 respondents. The study was conducted in the outpatient department of a private hospital in Western Indonesia. The instrument used was the caregiver burden inventory, which was analyzed using descriptive analysis. The results showed that the most respondents were female. The highest age of the respondent was 74 years, and the lowest was 18 years, with an average age of 44 years. There were 7 (30.34%) respondents who indicated the risk of fatigue, 6 (26.09%) respondents indicated the need to seek treatment, and 10 (43.48%) respondents did not feel the burden. As conclusion, caregivers were at risk for burden because of their roles and responsibilities. Nurses were expected to provide for the needs of caregivers during the surgical preparation to help reduce the burden and provide support in carrying out their roles during the care of post-cardiac surgery patients. Keywords: cardiac surgery; burden; caregiver