Access to services

This report reviews the support available to informal carers of people with dementia, with specific attention being given to carers’ assessments (or “check ins”) and the provision of short breaks for carers. Evidence for this research was collected from a range of sources, including via desk-based research, a survey of directors of adult social care, a request to local authorities for data, interviews with senior leaders and commissioners in adult social care, a survey of professionals, a survey of carers, and workshops held in England and Wales with people living with dementia and carers.

This report shows the that majority of unpaid carers are unable to take sufficient breaks and also highlights an unfair and unequal provision of carers’ breaks services across England. The report is based on the results of a survey of over 1,000 carers in the UK and a freedom of information request to local authorities and clinical commissioning groups across England. Only 8 per cent of carers responding to the survey felt they had been able to take sufficient breaks.

Help with activities of daily living for people in the community is provided through formal services (public and private) and informal (often unpaid) care. This paper investigates how these systems interlock and who is at risk of unmet need. It begins by mapping differences between OECD countries in the balance between formal and informal care, before giving a detailed breakdown for the UK. New analysis of UK Family Resources Survey data for 2012/13 and 2013/14 suggests high levels of unmet need.

Reconciliation of unpaid care and employment is an increasingly important societal, economic and policy issue, both in the UK and internationally. Previous research shows the effectiveness of formal social care services in enabling carers to remain in employment. Using quantitative and qualitative data collected from carers and the person they care for in 2013 and 2015, during a period of cuts to adult social care in England, we explore barriers experienced to receipt of social care services.

Informal caregivers may face barriers accessing services like respite care, training, and support groups. Using multinomial logistic regression, I modeled caregivers’ probability of using all services sought (“all services used”) and nonuse of any services sought (“any unused services”) as a function of caregiver and care-recipient characteristics.

The author, from the organisation Rethink, gives his personal views on the current state of the mental health services; what users and carers would like their experience of mental health services to be; and the key areas to tackle in order to improve services.

BACKGROUND: Understanding the health care experience of people with dementia and their caregivers is becoming increasingly important given the growing number of affected individuals. We conducted a systematic review of qualitative studies that examined aspects of the health care experience of people with dementia and their caregivers to better understand ways to improve care for this population.

Purpose of the Study: Findings are reported from a study that examined the effects of the Tailored Caregiver Assessment and Referral (TCARE®) protocol, a care management process designed to help family caregivers, on care planning and caregiver outcomes. Design and Methods: A longitudinal, randomized controlled trial was conducted with 97 caregivers enrolled in a demonstration project in Georgia. Data included on care plans pertaining to service recommendations, compliance, and use were reviewed.

Marie Curie campaigns to ensure that more people are able to be cared for and die at home. Previous research has shown that 63% of people would choose to die at home if they were terminally ill, however the reality in the UK is that just 21% of people die at home, while the majority (53%) die in hospital. This report describes the direct experiences of carers looking after someone at the end of life. It is based on interviews with 40 carers who were currently caring for a sick friend or relative or had been bereaved.

Background: This study aimed to evaluate outcomes for carers receiving the Admiral Nurse Service, a specialist mental health nursing service for carers of people with dementia. In contrast to many community mental health teams, it works primarily with the caregiver, focuses exclusively on dementia and offers continuing involvement, throughout the caregiving career, including emotional support, provision of information and coordination of practical support.