Introduction:

The functional status of older adults (OA) is usually used as an indicator of their health. Increased dependence raises the need for an informal caregiver (IC), leading to a state of work overload, which was frequently observed during the COVID-19 confinement.

Objective:

To assess the relationship between physical dependence of OA, job burnout of their IC, and the confinement conditions in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Materials and methods:

The participants included 77 OA together with their respective IC. The OA filled out a sociodemographic data sheet and a Confinement Conditions Questionnaire. In addition to these two forms, the IC filled out the Zarit Caregiver Burnout Scale and the ABVD Barthel Scale.

Results:

Statistically significant correlations were found between: physical dependence and job burnout (rho=0.475, p<0.01); physical dependence and confinement degree (rho=0.441, p<0.01); and job burden and confinement degree (rho=0.344, p<0.01).

Conclusion:

Caregivers develop a greater job burnout as a consequence of the OA’s dependence. Furthermore, it seems that this burnout is more related to the confinement conditions experienced by older adults than to the caregiver’s own conditions.

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