Mental health in the informal care of elderly people in the rural context

Abstract

Introduction: knowing the care activity contributes to the understanding of functional dependency in old age. Objective: To Identify mental health in caregivers of older people in rural contexts. Method: Descriptive study with 150 caregivers. The variables were evaluated: demographic and mental health; cognitive performance, emotional state, family bond, level of overload and social support of caregivers. Results: The average age of the caregivers was 52 years, with a greater proportion of women (81 %) from stratum one (80 %), with low education (56.7 %). The Minimental average was 25; of the Yesavage questionnaire corresponded to 5.44. For the family Apgar the mean was 12.57 and 34.24 on the Zarit scale. At the level of the MOS questionnaire, average scores are observed. Conclusion: Adequate mental health is observed in the group of rural caregivers evaluated. The above possibly attributed to contextual and personal characteristics.