Interviews

OBJECTIVE: To quantify time caring, burden and health status in carers of stroke patients after discharge from rehabilitation; to identify the potentially modifiable sociodemographic and clinical characteristics associated with these outcomes. METHODS: Patients and carers prospectively interviewed 6 (n=71) and 12 (n=57) months after discharge. Relationships of carer and patient variables with burden, health status and time analysed by Gaussian and Poisson regression. RESULTS: Carers showed considerable burden at 6 and 12 months.

In this article the authors explore the day-to-day lives of two groups of young people. Both were the subject of research activities carried out between 1997 and 2000. The outcomes of that work into the lives of young carers and young people with ME (myalgic encephalomyelitis) have been extensively documented elsewhere; here we draw out some of the common factors that serve to socially isolate and exclude young people who are heavily reliant on, or are drawn into supporting, home-based caring relationships.

AIM: This paper explores the use of ecomaps as a research tool for capturing data, using the example of the dynamic nature of social networks from which informal carers of people living with motor neurone disease draw their support. BACKGROUND: The need for social support in relation to health maintenance and disease management has been identified in the literature but little has been published about ways to investigate support networks.

The explosion of interest in young people as carers over the last decade and a half conceals the fact that there are still no reliable estimates of the number of young people with caregiving responsibilities. This is even more problematic in circumstances where the 'looked after' person has a mental health problem. In this study, we reflect on what can be done to identify, assess and support young people in these circumstances.

There has been a great deal of attention paid to young carers in recent research, social policy and service provision. In this paper we report on a survey and interview study of 46 young people aged 15 to 18, nine of whom had experience as young carers, to explore the ways in which young people construct the young carer and their disabled parent. A key theme arising from the interview data analysis is the construction of a series of normative assumptions about 'normal' childhood through which young carers and their disabled parent are viewed as non-normative and deficient.

Aim: To investigate the gains experienced by family caregivers of persons with dementia. Methods: Twelve respondents were recruited using purposive sampling from three institutions around Singapore. A qualitative design, guided by the grounded theory approach, was adopted and involved semi-structured, in-depth, face-to-face interviews. The interviews were recorded, transcribed and analyzed using open, axial and selective coding. Results: All caregivers interviewed reported having gained from caregiving.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To explore and understand the experience of new informal caregivers in Italy during the transition from hospital to home.

BACKGROUND: Frequent patient discharge into the home environment has lead to a significant increase in postdischarge care being provided by family caregivers. The transition period in particular is seen as a period of great significance, as caregivers may be unprepared and concerned as to the amount of care required by the recipient.

Many individuals provide care for people who would otherwise require core from health professionals. The need for 'informal carers' to support health services is likely to increase due to changing socio-demographic trends. However, little is known about the nature and extent of informal core and the needs of carers and those receiving care.

Worldwide people with dementia are usually cared for at home by informal carers who may themselves have poor health and/or live in social situations which intensify their needs. The scale of these needs continues to be underappreciated and they are exacerbated by the limited social, cultural and emotional resources that carers can draw upon. This paper looks at the disparities in support, and the complex negotiations made by carers, as they reconcile the everyday realities of informal care in the home.

Introduction: In Spain and the United Kingdom, more than 80% of people with schizophrenia are cared for by informal carers who are at risk of experiencing chronic stress. If this stress is not dealt with in time, a more serious disorder could develop. The present article aims to explore the role of nursing in this group of carers and attempts to answer the question: to what extent do nurses' views of their role affect their practice with carers?