Mendez-Luck, Carolyn A.

The number of Latinos with Alzheimer's disease (AD) is projected to more than double by 2030. Yet, the current literature is lagging on Alzheimer's caregiving among Latinos. This study explores how Mexican origin women experience dementia caregiving, and the coping strategies they use to manage their caregiving situations. Nine women were identified as caregivers of a family member with AD or dementia from a larger study on caregiving. Interviews with them were collected and subsequently analyzed using a modified grounded theory approach to reduce the data to identify thematic content.

Among the 50+ million informal caregivers in the US, substantial gender, racial/ethnic, and socioeconomic disparities in caregiving intensity are well-documented. However, those disparities may be more nuanced: gender disparities in caregiving intensity may vary by race/ethnicity (White, Black, and Hispanic) and socioeconomic status (SES).

Older spousal caregiving relationships involve support that may be affected by the health of either the caregiver or care recipient. We conducted a longitudinal analysis using pooled data from 4,632 community-dwelling spousal care recipients and caregivers aged ⩾50 from the 2002 to 2014 waves of the Health and Retirement Study. We specified logistic and negative binomial regression models using lagged predictor variables to assess the role of partner health status on spousal caregiver and care recipient health care utilization and physical functioning outcomes.

Purpose of the Study: Objective (physical) caregiving burden has not often been associated with subjective (emotional) burden among Mexican-origin women caregivers. Yet, many studies show that Latina caregivers suffer from negative psychological outcomes related to caregiving at a higher rate than non-Latino Whites.