Older People and Their Caregivers Across the Spectrum of Care

Judith Howe

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2015
• Print ISBN: 9780789022844
• eBook ISBN: 9781135426095
• Topic: Medicine
• Subtopic: Health Care Delivery

Examine recently developed concepts and strategies to help social workers and caregivers improve the quality of care for senior citizens!

Older People and Their Caregivers Across the Spectrum of Care focuses on two major aspects of elderly care: assessment and caregiving. This book examines assessment techniques and models used by social workers and other health care professionals to determine the type and extent of care necessary to meet the needs of the elderly. In addition, it voices recent concerns about the use of standardized models for all older adults. This book also addresses the burdens and benefits of being a caregiver to older relatives or friends and mentions several programs made available for caregivers through social services.

Older People and Their Caregivers Across the Spectrum of Care reviews assessment techniques and practice models that address issues such as abuse and HIV/AIDS care. This book also provides information about currently overlooked issues that will increasingly affect assessment and intervention, including diversity in cultural or religious beliefs and sexual orientation. This book is also unique in its focus on those unsung, unpaid heroesrelatives and friendswho assist elderly companions with their financial, social, and physical daily needs.

With Older People and Their Caregivers Across the Spectrum of Care you'll find vital information on:

• two elderly victims' services, one involving social services and the other involving criminal action
• the challenges of assessing older adults with HIV/AIDS
• the pros and cons of long-distance caregiving
• a life course assessment intervention model used at military colleges to help officers prepare proactively for parent care
• the Caregivers and Professionals Partnership (CAPP), which employs innovative outreach strategies to family caregivers of adults
• the Northport VA Friendly Companion Program, which enhances opportunities for interpersonal interaction
• African-American caregivers and their experiences with African-American elders

Social workers and caregivers will find the information in this book vital in their work. Generously enhanced with tables, charts, case studies, references, and personal vignettes, Older People and Their Caregivers Across the Spectrum of Care will help you improve quality of life for the older adults of todayand tomorrow.

P.S. I Love You: Long-Distance Caregiving

Beverly B. Koerin, PhD, MSW
Marcia P. Harrigan, PhD, MSW

SUMMARY. Family caregiving plays an important role in our health care delivery system, especially for the frail elderly. Despite a substantial literature on caregiving, there is little research on long-distance care-givers, a population expected to double in the next decade. This paper reports a secondary analysis of data from the 1997 NAC/AARP national survey and focuses on long-distance caregivers. Findings include caregiver and care receiver characteristics, patterns of caregiving, and impacts on caregivers. The data are compared to previous national studies on caregiving and implications for practice and further research are considered. [Article copies available for a fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-HAWORTH. E-mail address: <[email protected]> Website: <http://www.HaworthPress.com> © 2002 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.]

KEYWORDS.Caregivers, long-distance, elderly, caregiving, family caregiving, care network

Family caregivers play “an invisible role … in our health care delivery system,” especially for frail elderly individuals. Over 80% of all home-based care is provided on an informal, unpaid basis by family and friends (National Family Caregivers Association, 2000, p. 2). A 1997 study by the National Alliance for Caregiving (NAC) and the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) found that over 23% of households in the United States contained at least one individual providing care for a relative or friend aged 50 or older. Many factors have contributed to the growing interest in caregiving. Managed care restrictions on hospital care and home health services have increased demands on family caregivers. Demographic changes (e.g., declining birth date, increased longevity) and women’s increasing workforce participation have decreased the pool of caregivers. Geographic mobility of adult children and retirement-age parents has also affected the pool of local family caregivers. A 1997 study by the National Council on Aging (NCOA) reported approximately 7 million individuals were caregivers for relatives, usually parents, living many miles away; the number of long-distance (LD) caregivers was projected to double in the next 15 years (www.ncoa.org). The purpose of the present research is to explore the characteristics of long-distance caregivers, including caregiver stress and well being and services used by long-distance caregivers.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Scope of Caregiving and Caregiver Profiles

Caregiving has been variously defined in terms of kinship or relationship of caregiver to care receiver, living arrangements, types of care services provided, intensity or duration of the caregiving role, and age and health status of the care receiver (e.g., Barer & Johnson, 1990; Brody, 1985; George & Gwyther, 1986; Mui, 1995; NAC/AARP, 1997; Penrod, Kane, Kane, & Finch, 1995; Stone, Cafferata, & Sangl, 1987; Toseland & Rossiter, 1996). Consequently, estimates on the scope and nature of the caregiving population also vary, based on these definitions as well as the size and sources of the study samples. In 1987, an AARP/Travelers Foundation study estimated 7 million households involved in caregiving activities for an elder. The definition of caregiver was an adult individual who, currently or within the past 12 months, provided assistance to someone over the age of 50 with at least one ADL and at least two or more Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL), such as managing finances, housework, arranging for services to the care recipient (Wagner, 1997a, p. 1). In 1997 the National Alliance for Caregiving (NAC) and the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) published findings of its national survey, Family Caregiving in the U.S. This study estimated there were 22.4 million caregiving households. Caregiving was defined more generally than in previous studies: “providing unpaid care to a relative or friend who is aged 50 or older to help them take care of themselves” (AARP/NAC, 1997, p. 6).

Comparing the 1987 and 1997 studies, Wagner (1997b) noted some similarities and differences in caregiver profiles. The majority of caregivers were women (75% in 1987; 72% in 1997), who were on average 45 years old and providing care for a parent. The 1997 caregivers were more likely to be employed (64%) than 1987 caregivers (55%) and reported spending less time in caregiving activities. Wagner noted there were fewer reported “primary caregivers” in 1997 (41%) than in 1987 (63%), suggesting that many caregivers provide help to an elder, either with assistance from another sibling or relative or by providing such assistance to a sibling or relative....

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Table of Contents
• About the Editor
• Preface
• Foreword
• Social Work Gerontological Assessment Revisited
• Best Practice: The On Lok Model of Geriatric Interdisciplinary Team Care
• Caregivers and Professionals Partnership: A Hospital Based Program for Family Caregivers
• Older Adults with HIV Disease: Challenges for Integrated Assessment
• P.S. I Love You: Long-Distance Caregiving
• Elder Abuse Intervention Strategies: Social Service or Criminal Justice?
• Employed Women and Their Aging Family Convoys: A Life Course Model of Parent Care Assessment and Intervention
• From the World of Practice
• The Friendly Companion Program
• Stories Told and Lessons Learned from African American Female Caregivers’ Vignettes for Empowerment Practice
• Index