Caring at home for carers of elderly persons suffering from dementia

Abstract

With increase in longevity the number of elderly persons who are becoming dependent on their family members is increasing. As persons age they tend to become more frail and debilitated, thus reaching a point where they are no longer able to care for themselves completely. This study was aimed at comparing the levels of stress of carers of elderly persons suffering from dementia with the carers of elderly persons who were not suffering from dementia. Eighteen carers were chosen to participate in this research study through the following criteria: the carers had to be in the caregiving role for at least one year, the carers had to be living with the elderly person in care, the carers had to be caring for eldery persons over sixty years of age, the elderly persons had to be dependent in one or more of the activities of daily living, the elderly persons suffering from dementia had to be suffering from the disease for at least one year. A structured interview was used for the research study. The main subjects that were discussed were related to the caregivers' general feelings towards themselves, towards the elderly person in care and their caregiving role, the caregivers' sense of responsibility as well as negative impacts associated with caregiving. Results were analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively. Although the population sample was small, results showed that caring for a relative suffering from dementia is more stressful than caring for a relative who is not suffering from dementia. The study revealed that the carers of the elderly persons suffering from dementia have to deal with the physical dependence together with the behavioural changes of the elderly persons in care. Further studies are necessary to highlight the needs of the carers of the elderly persons suffering from dementia