1.THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN PATIENT PROFILE AND CAREGIVER FACTORS AMONGST RECENT STROKE SURVIVORS ADMITTED TO COMMUNITY HOSPITALS IN SINGAPORE
Gerald Choon-Huat Koh ; Julia Shi Yu Tan ; Alvona Zi Hut Loh ; Peck-Hoon Ong ; Liang En Wee ; Cynthia Chen ; Angela Cheong ; Ngan Phoon Fong ; Kin Ming Chan ; Boon Yeow Tan ; Edward Menon ; Kok Keng Lee ; Robert Petrella ; Amardeep Thind
The Singapore Family Physician 2016;42(3):88-100
Caregivers are important in post-stroke rehabilitation,
but little work has been done on the caregivers of
stroke survivors in Asian cultures. We examined the
association between patient profile (age, gender,
socioeconomic status, functional level, religion, and
ethnicity) and caregiver availability, number of
potential caregivers and primary caregiver identity
amongst Singaporean community hospitals' stroke
patients.
Data was obtained from all Singaporean community
hospitals from 1996-2005. 3796 patients fulfilled
inclusion criteria. Mixed logistic regression identified
independent predictors of caregiver availability and
primary caregiver identity. Mixed Poisson modelling
identified independent predictors of the number of
caregiver(s).
Among recent stroke survivors, 95.8% (3640/3796) had
potential caregivers, of which 94.2% (3429/3640) had
identified primary caregivers. Of the latter, 41.2% relied
on live-in hired help (foreign domestic workers-FDWs),
27.6% on spouses and 21.6% on first-degree relatives.
Independent patient factors associated with caregiver
availability and number were older, female, married,
higher socioeconomic status, having a religion and lower
functional level at admission. Independent
patient factors associated with FDW caregivers were
older age, female, Chinese compared to Malay, with
higher socioeconomic class and lower functional level at
admission. Caregiver availability for post-stroke patients in
Singapore community hospitals is relatively high, with
heavy dependence on FDWs.
Result Analysis
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