dc.description.abstract | Caregivers of hypertensive patients play a signifcant role in ensuring adequate patient care and lowering the risk of hypertension-
relatedcomplications. Caregivers are ideal study subjects for identifying gaps in hypertension management. Our study aimed to
assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of hypertensive patients’ caregivers, to identify their extent of involvement in
patients’ care, and to assess their care-related attributes. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted from August 2020 to
February 2021 in the eight largest tertiary care medical college hospitals and all eight divisions of Bangladesh, with 949 caregivers
enrolled. Data were collected using a pretested interviewer-administered questionnaire through snowball sampling and analyzed
using a one-way ANOVA, independent-sample T-test, and chi-square test. Among the 949 interviewed caregivers, 541 (57.0%)
were female, and 479 (50.5%) were aged 18 to 25 years. Te percentage scores regarding overall knowledge, attitude, and practice
of the caregivers were 54.83 ± 17.95, 47.95 ± 24.05, and 61.26 ± 17.50, respectively. Caregivers’ education, history of hypertension,
residence, age, relationship with the patient, occupation, and caregiving duration were signifcantly associated with the KAP
scores. In addition, factors such as relationship with the patient, age, educational status, occupation, residence, and caregiving
duration/day had signifcant correlations with all types of burden. Findings of this study suggest the necessity for awareness
programs for the caregivers of hypertensive patients to diminish the gap in their KAP and improve their mental and physical
health. | en_US |