| Maintaining and maximizing health status and well-being is critical for informal caregivers. However, little investigation has been done to examine how health status may influence health promotion of caregivers. Understanding how the caregiver's physical and mental health influences participation in health promotion behaviors would allow for development and implementation of health specific nursing interventions. This secondary data analysis examined the effects of caregiver demographic variables, care recipient's functional status, length of caregiving, and disruptive life events on the health, help orientation, and health promotion behaviors of informal caregivers. The study sample was composed of 391 individuals providing at least five hours of care to an impaired elder living in a community setting. The sample was primarily female, 83.9%, and consisted of 136 Black caregivers, 34.8%, and 255 White caregivers, 65.2%.;The conceptual model for the study was derived from Pender's health promotion model and Brickman, Rabinowitz, Karuza, Coates, Cohn, and Kidder's concept of help orientation. Data for this study were obtained through the use of the following instruments: Wolinsky's Functional Status Scale, Kiyak's Recent Life Events, Karuza's Help Orientation, Wheaton/Langer Psychological Distress Scale, Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale, and Belloc and Breslow's Health Practices Index. Demographic data were obtained by interviewer observation and participant self-report.;Findings from this study indicated that disruptive life events, gender and race were significant in explaining physical and mental health. Help orientation was not explained by the study's independent variables. Males, and those with higher income were more likely to report engaging in health promotion behaviors. Help orientation failed to explain caregiver health promotion behaviors. Anxiety contributed significantly more explanation in health promotion behaviors than self-assessed health and depression. Results for the overall model indicated gender, race, income, and anxiety made significant independent contributions in explaining health promotion behaviors. Study results indicated a need for modification of the study's model, and further exploration of help orientation. |
