Burden and quality of life among caregivers of psychiatric inpatients in a neuropsychiatric hospital in Southeast Nigeria: a cross-sectional study

Background Caregivers of individuals with severe mental illness often experience substantial psychological, social, and financial strain that may negatively affect their quality of life (QoL). Evidence on caregiver burden in psychiatric inpatient settings in Nigeria remains limited. This study assessed the burden and QoL of caregivers of psychiatric inpatients at the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital Enugu (FNHE) in Southeast Nigeria. Methods A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 214 caregivers of psychiatric inpatients selected through consecutive sampling. Caregiver burden and QoL were assesses using structured questionnaires adapted from the Zarit Burden Interview and the WHOQoL-BREF. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 20. Frequencies and percentages were used to summarize categorical responses, while the chi-square test was used to assess associations between caregiver burden, quality of life, and socio-demographic variables. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Results Most caregivers were aged 25–44 years (43.9%), female (57.0%), married (53.3%), and self-employed (63.1%). Nearly half had tertiary education (43.9%), and siblings constituted the largest proportion of caregivers (44.9%). Approximately 40.7% had provided care for more than three years. Overall, 45.8% reported little or no burden, 37.9% experienced mild to moderate burden, and 0.9% reported severe burden. Financial strain (43.9%) and emotional exhaustion (29.9%) were commonly reported challenges. Regarding QoL, 43.9% of respondents reported moderate QoL, 33.6% reported good QoL, and 11.2% reported poor QoL. Satisfaction was relatively high in some domains, with 76.2% satisfied with their ability to perform daily activities and 58.9% satisfied with personal relationships; however, 43.9% expressed dissatisfaction with their financial situation. Caregiver burden was significantly associated with QoL (p < 0.001), with higher burden linked to poorer QoL. Among socio-demographic factors, only caregiving duration was significantly associated with caregiver burden (p = 0.001). Conclusions Caregivers of psychiatric inpatients demonstrated notable resilience despite experiencing financial and emotional challenges. Increased caregiver burden was associated with poorer QoL, highlighting the need for targeted psychosocial and economic support interventions to improve caregiver well-being in psychiatric care settings. Clinical trial number: not applicable