153203 20251017144557.0 doi 10.3934/publichealth.2025025 sideral 143642 ART-2025-143642 eng Gonzalo-Ciria, Laura Loss of productivity among caregivers of dependent family members 2025 Access copy available to the general public Unrestricted Background Assuming the care of a dependent family member can constitute a health risk factor that significantly reduces the productivity of family caregivers, compromising their future and quality of life. Objective Our purpose of this study was to investigate the productivity activities that are altered in the caregivers of a dependent family member and the impact this has on their satisfaction and quality of life. Methods An analytical observational study was conducted for 500 caregivers of dependent family members. Sociodemographic data were collected for caregivers and their dependent family members. Carers' occupational performance and satisfaction were assessed using the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure (COPM), and quality of life was assessed using the World Health Organization - Quality of Life (WHOQOL-Bref). Comparison between groups was performed using the Chi-square test for qualitative variables. Pearson's correlation coefficient was used to assess the strength and direction of linear associations between numerical variables. Results Most caregivers were women (72.3%, n = 364), with an average age of 60.3 ± 13.64 years. These individuals were providing care for a family member with severe dependency (69.7%, n = 348), classified as Grade III. Up to 38.2% (n = 191) of caregivers struggled with maintaining punctuality and consistency in their paid employment, and 25.6% (n = 128) of caregivers stopped or had difficulty working. In addition, 28.4% (n = 142) of caregivers had problems with household cleaning and tidying, 20.4% (n = 102) perceived that they neglected their other family members, and 18.6% (n = 93) of caregivers encountered problems attending courses and furthering their education. Women were more affected in terms of productivity. Moreover, performance and quality of life worsened as the number of productivity activities affected increased. Conclusions Caring for a dependent family member has a considerable impact on the caregiver's productive activities, affecting their work performance, household management, and professional development, with a particularly marked impact on women. This caregiving role is also associated with a decrease in quality of life, which highlights the need for interventions to support caregivers in these areas. info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess by https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.es info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion De Heredia-Torres, Marta Pérez Vidal-Sánchez, María Isabel Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0003-3861-9004 López-de-la-Fuente, María José Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0002-2516-6053 Bullón-Benito, Elisa Poveda-García, Ana Ortiz-Piña, Mariana Ruiz-Garrós, María Cristina Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0003-4513-6801 Gascón-Catalán, Ana Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0003-0335-0404 1006 255 Universidad de Zaragoza Dpto. Fisiatría y Enfermería Área Enfermería 1006 413 Universidad de Zaragoza Dpto. Fisiatría y Enfermería Área Fisioterapia 12, 2 (2025), 451-469 AIMS public health 2327-8994 498028 http://zaguan.unizar.es/record/153203/files/texto_completo.pdf Versión publicada 2329463 http://zaguan.unizar.es/record/153203/files/texto_completo.jpg?subformat=icon icon Versión publicada oai:zaguan.unizar.es:153203 articulos driver 2025-10-17-14:13:31 ARTICLE