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‘BARELY MANAGING’: THE NEEDS OF PEOPLE WITH DEMENTIA AND THEIR CARERS
Author(s) -
Waite H.,
Knapman C.
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
australian journal on ageing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.63
H-Index - 34
eISSN - 1741-6612
pISSN - 0726-4240
DOI - 10.1111/j.1741-6612.1993.tb00602.x
Subject(s) - dementia , perspective (graphical) , psychology , individualism , ideal (ethics) , quality of life (healthcare) , older people , gerontology , relation (database) , medicine , psychotherapist , disease , philosophy , epistemology , pathology , database , artificial intelligence , computer science , political science , law
Studies of caring for people with dementia have concentrated on the physical and psychological well‐being of the carer using a primarily individualistic model. By drawing on a study of the needs of people with dementia and their carers in the Australian Capital Territory, the importance of a complementary, socially based perspective is demonstrated. The data, from a survey and interviews, indicate that quality of life for the person with dementia and the carer is shaped by a complex of social factors. Some of these, particularly age and gender, are discussed in relation to findings in such areas as diagnosis, employment and the experience of caring. Several commonly held beliefs about ‘ideal’ carers and caregiving situations are challenged by the findings.