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P2‐503: STUDY ON THE CARE BURDEN AND INFLUENCING FACTORS OF FAMILY CAREGIVERS OF DEMENTED ELDERLY
Author(s) -
Sun Ning
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
alzheimer's and dementia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.713
H-Index - 118
eISSN - 1552-5279
pISSN - 1552-5260
DOI - 10.1016/j.jalz.2019.06.2911
Subject(s) - dementia , caregiver burden , family caregivers , intervention (counseling) , gerontology , medicine , scale (ratio) , community based care , psychology , nursing , health care , disease , physics , pathology , quantum mechanics , economics , economic growth
Background: The rising number of persons with dementia (PwD) and women’s increasing labor force participation promote the debate on reconciliation between family life and employment [1, 2]. Employed informal caregivers have to balance challenges of caregiving, family and work. However, whether they appraise working as an additional strain or even a counterbalance depends on, inter alia, their own characteristics and their caregiving network. Both aspects have not been considered in research. This mixed methods study aims to explore the reconciliation between caregiving in dementia, family and employment by considering multiple members of caregiving networks of home-dwelling PwD.Methods: We used a simultaneous qualitatively driven mixed methods design [3]. By purposive sampling, we included seven caregiving networks of home-dwelling PwD; each of them consisting of at least two informal caregivers living in Northern Germany. Narrative interviews of participants were interpreted according to the DocumentaryMethod [4] (QUAL). By completing standardized questionnaires, participants provided data concerning their burden, health, personality traits, self-efficacy and coping skills (quan). Network graphs described their structure and the importance of their members. Results: QUAL-data produced two dimensions “family” and “reconciliation with employment” that describe possible ways of reconciliation in this sample (in progress). Either family cohesion or conflicts characterize the different caregiving networks. Furthermore, individuals establish complex strategies to reconcile employment with caregiving, for example by developing time-efficient organizational skills, involving external assistants, or through flexible working arrangements. Quan-data described and enhanced the profiles of included caregivers in this study (n1⁄419). Regarding the complexity of this topic, network data expanded previous findings, which were based only on the main caregivers’ experience by providing insight into a caregiving network from different perspectives. Conclusions: This study considers personal and network-related characteristics of informal caregivers of PwD for the first time; in this way, we hope to highlight the relevance of these factors in caregivers’ experience of the reconciliation between caregiving in dementia, family and employment. Results will help to understand better how informal caregivers of PwD are seeking to balance these requirements and which interventions can support them to fulfil their major role in dementia caregiving in our society.