Stress

Background: Rapid demographic ageing will soon lead to large increases in the numbers of persons with dementia in developing countries. This study is the first comprehensive assessment of care arrangements for people with dementia in those regions.

This paper reports an analysis of the relative influence of work-related, care-related and personal factors on carer outcomes among 204 working female carers. To examine the importance of personal factors, the ‘Motivations in Elder Care Scale’ (MECS) and the ‘Relationships in Elder Care Scale’ (RECS) were developed. In a qualitative pilot study, interviews with working-age carers were drawn on to form the items for inclusion.

Aim.  The aim of this was to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions provided by a Community Mental Health Team (CMHT) in reducing stress in carers of individuals with dementia.

High levels of stress among family and professional caregivers of older adults with dementia are associated with physical and mental health problems, and decreased quality of care. Existing stress reduction interventions are based on the western medical model of care. They typically focus on providing caregivers with support, psychoeducation or behaviour management skills, and these interventions have typically had modest outcomes. An especially promising intervention for dementia caregivers, which is based on the eastern holistic model of care, is mindfulness training.

Caring for a spouse with dementia is stressful and respite care is sometimes used to reduce this burden. Spouses may find some aspects of caring rewarding but the literature on positive aspects of caring is limited. To describe activities enjoyed by patients with dementia together with their spouses, and examine their relationship with psychological morbidity in carers. A convenience sample of 46 patients with mild to moderate dementia (91% with Alzheimer's disease, AD) and their spouses were interviewed at home.

Objectives: The topic of how primary informal caregivers cope with their caregiving demands has generated significant research. However, little is known about secondary informal caregivers, who often share caregiving responsibilities. This cross-sectional study aims to analyse and compare the use and effectiveness of coping strategies of primary and secondary informal caregivers of dependent elderly people, living at home.

This article summarises PhD research undertaken by the author and provides readers with the carer assessment tools validated in the study. [Journal abstract]

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe the experience of caring for a family member with Alzheimer’s disease or related disorder (ADRD) living at home among a diverse sample of 103 family caregivers. The study involved secondary analysis of in-depth transcribed interview data using van Kaam’s rigorous four phase, 12-step psychophenomenological method. A total of 2,115 descriptive expressions were categorized into 38 preliminary structural elements. Eight essential structural elements emerged from an analysis of the preliminary structural elements.

OBJECTIVE: To measure and compare the burden on spousal carers of patients with and without dementia who were consulting a memory clinic for the first time.

This study investigated the factors contributing to psychological distress and positive affect over time in female working carers of older people. Questionnaires (including measures of work-related, care-related, interpersonal and psychological aspects of working and caring) were distributed to 275 female working carers in the UK, the majority of whom were working as nurses in the National Health Service. In cross-sectional analyses, higher work stress and work demands predicted higher psychological distress among respondents.