Caregivers likely to experience emotional, physical, financial difficulties

Being a caregiver for an older adult isn't easy. A new study suggests that family and unpaid caregivers who provide substantial help with health care were more likely to miss out on valued activities, have a loss of work productivity and experience emotional, physical and financial difficulties.
         Almost 8 million older adults with significant disabilities live in the community with help from family and unpaid caregivers. Caregivers not only provide most assistance with everyday activities but they help with a range of health care activities, including physician visits.
The study sample represented 14.7 million caregivers assisting 7.7 million older adults, of which 6.5 million caregivers (44.1 percent) provided substantial help, 4.4 million (29.8 percent) provided some help and 3.8 million (26.1 percent) provided no help with health care.
     Among older adults receiving substantial help with health care activities, 45.5 percent had dementia and 34.3 percent had severe disability, according to the study.Caregivers who provided substantial help with health care were more likely to:
Live with older adults, Experience emotional, physical and financial difficulty participate less in valued activities, such as visiting friends and family, going out for fun, attending religious services, and participating in club or group activities, report loss of work productivity, Utilize supportive services, although only about one-quarter utilized such services

"Because the magnitude and scope of assistance provided to disabled older adults by family and unpaid caregivers far exceed those of paid caregivers, and because their involvement persists across both time and settings of care, devising organizational strategies and health care practices to identify and more purposefully engage and support family caregivers merits greater attention by health system stakeholders seeking high-value care," the study concludes.
 Till we meet again, be safe.