Caregiver Burden and Resilience in Family Members of Alcohol Dependent Patients: Observations from Eastern India

Background: Caregiver burden for alcohol dependent patients refers to the physical, emotional, financial, and social challenges faced by individuals who provide care and support to someone struggling with alcohol dependence. Caregivers often experience high levels of stress, anxiety, and emotional distress when dealing with a loved one's alcohol dependence. The present study tried to analyse the caregiver burden and resilience among family members of alcohol dependent individuals in eastern India. Methods: A cross-sectional observational study patients attending general outpatient clinics who had positive alcohol consumption history and were being accompanied by their caregivers to the facility. Patient and caregiver’s demographics were noted followed by caregiver’s burden and resilience indices using Burden Scale for Family Caregiving (BSFC) and Brief Resilience Scale (BRS). Responses were analysed statistically. Results: 35.9% patients severely alcohol dependent. Composite caregiver burden score showed 50.6% caregivers were moderately burdened, followed by 37.6% caregivers who were found to be severely burdened. Most caregivers showed low resilience. Severity of alcohol dependence was positively correlated with patient’s age, while caregiver’s burden was found to have significant positive correlation with both patient and caregiver’s age, and severity of alcohol dependence. Resilience was negatively correlated with patient as well as caregiver’s age and severity of alcohol dependence (p=0.000). Female caregivers reported lower resilience as compared to male caregivers (p=0.003). Conclusion: Caregiving is a challenging responsibility. It is important for caregivers to recognize the impact of alcohol dependence on their lives and to seek support, both for themselves and for the person with addiction.