Agresividad de familiares cuidadores de enfermos oncológicos hospitalizados

Abstract

Background: Aggressiveness to health personnel causes burnout and changes interpersonal relationship. The burden of relatives can be related to aggressiveness. The aim is to know this relation and to value solutions. Patients and methods: Cross-sectional descriptive study applying a selfadminister anonymous questionnaire to 70 relatives, caregivers of cancer in-patients, including the Zarit Scale questionnare (ZS), a Likert scale on aggressiveness of relatives (AR) (reliability alpha of Cronbach 0,8852) and solutions. Likelihood ratios were determined (LR). Results: Burden was 62,5% and correlate with AR to health professional r=0,405 (p=0.001). In multivariant analisys correlation was R=0,68 (R2=47%) related to caregiver uncertainty about what to do about their relatives (b= 0,40) to have undergone violent attitudes during hospital stay (b=0.31), to feel not to have as much privacy as caregiver would like (b= 0,27). The LR+ for aggressiveness range from 1’2 (ZS>14) to 3’9 (ZS>40). The suitable solutions were to reduce available patient rooms or increase patient-to-nurse ratio. The unsuitable to report the court. The aggressiveness in case of burdened relatives was higher by each solution except to the latter. Conclusions: Aggressiveness in caregivers’ relatives of cancer in-patients, is related to burden, uncertainty, lack of privacy or suffer violence, with a low-moderate LR. Could be lessen improving patient-to-nurse ratio.