National Survey of Caregivers [microform] : Summary of Findings.
Most older Americans who have impaired ability to function avoid institutionalization because of personal care and financial assistance received from family members or friends. However, there is a void in terms of national data on the magnitude of the phenomenon, the financial costs associated with...
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| Corporate Authors: | , |
| Format: | Microfilm Book |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
[Place of publication not identified] :
Distributed by ERIC Clearinghouse,
1988.
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| Summary: | Most older Americans who have impaired ability to function avoid institutionalization because of personal care and financial assistance received from family members or friends. However, there is a void in terms of national data on the magnitude of the phenomenon, the financial costs associated with providing care, the use of services especially developed for caregivers, and the effects of caregiving on employment. To fill the void, a national caregivers survey was conducted through a random sample of U.S. telephone households (N=754). The results indicated that about 7.8 percent of all households contained a caregiver, translating into about 7 million households. Three-quarters of the caregivers were women with an average age of 45. Reasons given for becoming a caregiver included living close (33 percent); no choice because no one else would do it (25 percent); and closer relationship with recipient than others (18 percent). Care recipients were most often mothers, grandmothers, fathers, or spouses. The average time commitment was 12 hours a week. Two-thirds of the caregivers provided assistance with one or more activities of daily living. Most caregivers used at least one support service, such as home health aides. The most mentioned caregiver needs related to information about developments in medicine and health care. Most caregivers surveyed had made lifestyle changes since becomming caregivers. (ABL) |
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| Item Description: | Availability: American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), 1909 K Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20049 (Stock Number D13203, first 50 copies free). ERIC Document Number: ED315674. |
| Physical Description: | 79 pages |
| Reproduction Note: | Microfiche. |
| Action Note: | committed to retain |