Quality of life in family caregivers of stroke patients: narrative review

Abstract

Stroke is a leading cause of long-term disability, affecting not only survivors but also family members who serve as caregivers. Ongoing caregiving imposes physical, psychological, social, and environmental burdens that reduce caregivers quality of life. Evidence integrating factors associated with caregiver quality of life and effective nursing interventions remains limited. This narrative review aimed to synthesize published evidence on the quality of life of family caregivers of stroke survivors, identify associated factors, and review nursing interventions to improve caregiver well-being and quality of life. A narrative review was conducted using articles from the Scopus, PubMed, and ScienceDirect databases. English-language observational and interventional studies published between 2000 and 2025 involving family caregivers of stroke survivors and reporting caregiver quality of life were included. Eligible studies were analyzed using narrative synthesis. Thirteen articles were included. Family caregivers generally reported low to moderate quality of life, particularly in the psychological and environmental domains. Lower quality of life was associated with high caregiver burden, depression, limited social support, prolonged caregiving, and patients' cognitive and emotional impairments. Nursing interventions, including adaptation-based education, self-care support, nurse-led health coaching, and caregiver empowerment programs, were found to improve caregiver well-being and quality of life. The findings highlight the importance of implementing structured, caregiver-centered nursing interventions to improve caregivers' quality of life and support comprehensive stroke care.