Older New Zealanders in caregiving roles: Psychological functioning of caregivers of people living with dementia

Abstract

Research suggests that caregiving can have both positive and negative effects on psychological functioning. It is, however, less understood how these positive and negative effects interact within individuals. The present study aimed to identify different patterns of psychological functioning and their correlates among caregivers of dementia patients. The sample included 336 older caregivers. Latent profile analysis revealed three distinct profiles. The optimally functioning profile was characterized by high levels of positive outcomes and low levels of depression. Those with a suboptimally functioning profile reported low levels of positive outcomes and increased depression symptoms. The poorly functioning profile displayed extremely high levels of depression symptoms and extremely low levels of positive outcomes. Differentiation among groups was driven by differences in social support and to a lesser extent by socio-demographic factors and caregiving experience. Results suggest that caregiving is not necessarily a burdensome role and highlight the role of social relationships.

Determinants of prescribing potentially inappropriate medications in a nationwide cohort of community dwellers with dementia receiving a comprehensive geriatric assessment

“…The global incidence of dementia is expected to rise to 81 million by 2040, primarily because of the progressive nature of the disorder, which involves worsening of neurocognitive impairment and loss of basic functions in daily life . In 2016, the estimated prevalence of dementia in New Zealand (NZ) was more than 62 000, which is predicted to increase to 170 000 in 2050 . One in every four “international Resident Assessment Instrument‐Home Care” (interRAI‐HC) evaluated individuals in 2016 to 2017 in NZ was diagnosed with dementia, of which 35% needed extensive assistance or were completely dependent, and 30% showed daily episodes of disturbing behaviours, like wandering or being abusive .…”

Dual caregiving by grandmothers with older relatives: Personal factors influencing health and stress

“…Particularly in the caregiving context, several research studies have explored "caregiver stress," assuming that prolonged provision of family care can be a highly stressful situation for the caregiver that could potentially impair their health (Kroenke et al, 2004;Musil et al, 2011). This model has been used not only to study stress process in caregivers of people with Alzheimer's disease or dementia (Fekete et al, 2019;Wong and Zelman, 2019), but has also been used for caregivers of older relatives (Pine and Steffen, 2019;Walsh and Murphy, 2019), for adults providing care for their spouses (Kim et al, 2017), for adult-child caregivers (Liu et al, 2019), grandparent caregivers (Whitley and Fuller-Thomson, 2016), or even for informal caregivers in general (Boogaard et al, 2019). Despite the elapsed time, this model is still used as a theoretical framework from which to establish the specific relevance of different stressors in the caregiving stress process.…”

The Turkish Version of the Carer’s Assessment of Satisfaction Index (Casi-Tr): Its Validation and Reliability

“…Most of the studies in the literature on caregivers focus on the negative aspects of caregiving, such as the caregiving burden (1,2), depression (3,4), anxiety (5), a decrease in quality of life (4), and physical health impairments (6). However, some studies emphasize that caregiving may also have positive effects on caregivers (7,8).…”