Partner care at the end-of-life: identity, language and characteristics

Corden, Anne; Hirst, Michael

doi:10.1017/s0144686x10000838

Cited by 25 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…Small duties accumulated until carers recognised that they were undertaking a significant supportive role – particularly if they had to give up work at that point [26]. Many carers saw the caring role as intrinsic to their relationship as wife, husband, son, daughter, sibling etc.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Understanding the barriers to identifying carers of people with advanced illness in primary care: triangulating three data sources

et al. 2014

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BackgroundApproximately 10% of the UK population have an unpaid caring role for a family member or friend. Many of these carers make a significant contribution to supporting patients at the end of life. Carers can experience poor physical and psychosocial wellbeing, yet they remain largely unsupported by health and social care services. Despite initiatives for general practices to identify carers and their needs, many remain unidentified. Neither are carers self-identifying and requesting support. This study set out to explore the barriers to, and consider strategies for, identifying carers in primary care.MethodsWe integrated findings from three data sources – a review of the caregiving literature; a workshop with researchers who have undertaken research with those caring at the end of life, and focus groups with carers and health professionals.ResultsThree categories of barrier emerged. 1) Taking on the care of another person is often a gradual process, carers did not immediately identify with being a ‘carer’ – preferring to think of themselves in relational terms to the patient e.g. spouse, sibling, son or daughter. Often it was health and social care professionals who encouraged carers to consider themselves as an unpaid carer. 2) As the cared-for person’s condition deteriorated, the caring role often became all-encompassing so that carers were managing competing demands, and felt unable to look after their own needs as well as those of the cared-for person. 3) There was ambiguity about the legitimacy of carer needs and about the role of the primary health care team in supporting carers, from both the perspective of the carers and the health professionals. GPs were thought to be reactive rather than proactive which discouraged carers from asking for help.ConclusionsThe needs of carers have to be legitimised to ensure primary care staff are proactive in their approach and carers are empowered to utilise the support available. Strategies to identify carers have to be sensitive to the complex dynamics of a caring relationship as well as the primary care context. Identification is a key factor in improving support for carers themselves and to enable them to support the patient.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Understanding the barriers to identifying carers of people with advanced illness in primary care: triangulating three data sources

et al. 2014

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“…There are limitations in using secondary data for the analysis of unpaid care. Responses to questions on unpaid care are influenced by survey design, how concepts are defined, the nature of the caring relationship and the prevailing socio‐economic environment (Fine 2007, Corden & Hirst 2011, Molyneaux et al. 2011).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

When is a carer’s employment at risk? Longitudinal analysis of unpaid care and employment in midlife in England

King

Pickard

2013

Health &Amp; Social Care in the Community

106

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This article examines the thresholds at which provision of unpaid care affects employment in England. Previous research has shown that providing care for 20 or more hours a week has a negative effect on employment. The present article explores the impact of a lower threshold and asks whether provision of care for 10 or more hours a week has a negative effect on employment. The article focuses on women and men aged between 50 and State Pension Age (60 for women, 65 for men). The study uses data from the first four waves of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA), collected in 2002/2003, 2004/2005, 2006/2007 and 2008/2009. Across these waves, there are 17,123 people aged 50-59/64 years, of whom 9% provide unpaid care to an adult. Using logistic regression analysis of the longitudinal data, the study finds that employed women in their fifties who start providing care for <10 hours a week are significantly more likely to remain in employment one wave later than similar women who have not started to provide care. In contrast, employed women in their fifties who start providing care for 10 or more hours a week are significantly less likely to remain in employment one wave later than similar women who have not started to provide care. Employed men aged between 50 and State Pension Age, who provide care for 10 or more hours a week at the beginning of the period have a significantly reduced employment rate one wave later than those who do not provide care. The study therefore suggests that carers' employment may be negatively affected when care is provided at a lower intensity than is generally estimated in England. This has important implications for local authorities, who have a duty to provide services to carers whose employment is at risk.

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“…Our sources all rely on self-reporting, and it is known that partner caregivers, men and women, generally are reluctant to report themselves as caregivers; they are just ''helping'' their partner (e.g. Corden & Hirst 2011).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Partner care, gender equality, and ageing in Spain and Sweden

Abellán¹,

Pérez²,

Pujol³

et al. 2017

Int J Ageing Later Life

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We used national surveys to study how older persons' changing household patterns influence the gender balance of caregiving in two countries with distinct household structures and cultures, Spain and Sweden. In both countries, men and women provide care equally often for their partner in couple-only households. This has become the most common household type among older persons in Spain and prevails altogether in Sweden. This challenges the traditional dominance of young or middle-aged women as primary caregivers in Spain. In Sweden, many caregivers are old themselves. We focus attention to partners as caregivers and the consequences of changing household structures for caregiving, which may be on the way to gender equality in both countries, with implications for families and for the public services.

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Partner care at the end-of-life: identity, language and characteristics

Cited by 25 publications

References 21 publications

Understanding the barriers to identifying carers of people with advanced illness in primary care: triangulating three data sources

Understanding the barriers to identifying carers of people with advanced illness in primary care: triangulating three data sources

When is a carer’s employment at risk? Longitudinal analysis of unpaid care and employment in midlife in England

Partner care, gender equality, and ageing in Spain and Sweden

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