When care demands rise: Exploring the impact of hemiparesis dependency and healthcare challenges among caregivers at a tertiary hospital in Bhubaneswar.

The burden of hemiparesis on caregivers is significant, often leading to physical strain, emotional stress, social isolation, depression, and a decline in their own health. The aim is to investigate the degree of dependency of hemiparesis patients and their healthcare challenges among caregivers of stroke survivors. The current study has adopted a correlational research design to assess the degree of dependency of hemiparesis patients and their health care challenges among caregivers of stroke survivors at the neurology ward of IMS and SUM hospital, Bhubaneswar. A total of 92 samples were chosen using the total enumerative sampling technique. The tools used were structured sociodemographic proforma for hemiparesis patients and caregivers, functional independence measure (FIM) tool for measuring degree of dependence, and structured five-point rating scale for measuring caregiver challenges. Collected data were analyzed by using descriptive (frequency and percentage) and inferential statistics (association and correlation analysis). The findings of the study reveal that the maximum hemiparesis patients were aged over 65 years (48%) and were males (68%). Most of the caregivers were spouse (62%). Most of the hemiparesis patients were partially dependent (74%) on caregivers revealed by FIM score, and caregivers moderately face challenges (57%). There is a strong positive correlation found between the degree of dependency and caregiver's challenge (r = 0.01, P = 0.00). The Chi-square test reveals that there is a no association between the caregiver challenges and sociodemographic variables. Hence, the study concluded that mostly hemiparesis patients were partially dependent on their caregivers and the caregivers face many challenges as they take care of their close ones.