The effectiveness of a group psycho-educational program on family caregiver burden of patients with mental disorders

BACKGROUND: Brief family intervention may have a positive impact on family caregivers for patients with mental disorders. We assessed the effectiveness of a group psycho-educational program on family caregivers for patients with schizophrenia and mood disorders. METHODS: This randomized controlled trial was performed on 100 caregivers for patients with mental disorders attending the Isfahan Behavioral Sciences Research Center (IBSRC), in Isfahan, Iran. One hundred family caregivers of patients with schizophrenia (n = 50) and mood disorders (n = 50) were selected and assigned randomly to either a psycho-educational group intervention or routine care in each diagnosis category. The caregivers were followed for 3 months. Caregiver burden was assessed using the Zarit Burden Interview RESULTS: The mean scores of the Zarit caregiver burden decreased significantly for the group that participated in the psycho-educational program, while scores in the control group did not change significantly. CONCLUSIONS: This group intervention program was effective to reduce the caregiver burden for both categories of mental disorders in the Iranian population. This group intervention program may improve the quality of life of patients and caregivers by improving the standards of care giving. TRIAL REGISTRATION: RCT registration number: IRCT138804272200N