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Costs and Resource Use Associated with Alzheimer's Disease in Italy: Results from an Observational Study

Background: The GERAS II study aimed to assess societal costs and resource use associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD) for patients and their primary caregivers in Italy and Spain, stratified for different severity stages of AD at baseline.

Wed, 01/23/2019 - 15:46

Usage and Usability of a Web-based Program for Family Caregivers of Older People in Three European Countries: A Mixed-Methods Evaluation

InformCare is a European Web platform that supports informal caregivers of older people by providing access to online information and professional and peer support. The aim of this study was to assess the usage and usability of a psychosocial Web-based program carried out in three European countries (Italy, Sweden, and Germany). A mixed-methods sequential explanatory design was adopted, comprising baseline and postintervention assessments, as well as combined thematic content analysis of results and focus group findings.

Wed, 01/23/2019 - 14:13

Validation of the Italian Version of the Caregiver Abuse Screen among Family Caregivers of Older People with Alzheimer's Disease

Introduction. Elder abuse is often a hidden phenomenon and, in many cases, screening practices are difficult to implement among older people with dementia. The Caregiver Abuse Screen (CASE) is a useful tool which is administered to family caregivers for detecting their potential abusive behavior. Objectives. To validate the Italian version of the CASE tool in the context of family caregiving of older people with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and to identify risk factors for elder abuse in Italy. Methods.

Wed, 10/31/2018 - 14:56

Shared decision-making in dementia care planning: barriers and facilitators in two European countries

Background: Shared decision-making (SDM) is a means of allowing people with dementia to take part in making choices, be autonomous and participate in social activities. Involving them in SDM is an important way of promoting social health. However, including families and dementia residents in decision-making can be challenging for care staff working in nursing homes. The objective of this study was to identify barriers and facilitators regarding the implementation of an SDM framework for care planning in two nursing homes, one in Italy and one in the Netherlands.

Wed, 10/31/2018 - 14:17

Mutual support groups for family caregivers of people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in Italy: A pilot study

Family caregivers of people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) live stressful lives in which they spend most of their time caring for their loved ones and managing difficult situations, thereby reducing the time spent in taking care of themselves. This situation may last several years. Previous literature has widely highlighted that this situation reduces caregivers’ quality of life and increases their psychological distress and risk of health problems, but there is a lack of studies that focus on psychological interventions for these situations.

Mon, 09/10/2018 - 12:13

Factors affecting in-hospital informal caregiving as decided by families: findings from a longitudinal study conducted in acute medical units

Background Informal caregiving offered by family members has been widely studied in the community setting, but little attention to date has been dedicated to that offered at the hospital level. Aims To describe the proportion of patients admitted to acute medical units receiving care from informal caregivers as decided by the family and to identify the factors affecting the numbers of care shifts performed by informal caregivers.

Thu, 08/23/2018 - 15:42

The burden of informal care for Alzheimer's Disease: carer perceptions from an empirical study in England, Italy and Sweden

Dementia of the Alzheimer type and related disorders greatly impact not only on the lives of sufferers but also on their unpaid informal carers, who usually are spouses or children. Carers are more likely to suffer from stress, take prescribed medication and visit their physicians compared with non-carers (Burns and Rabins, 2000). Social isolation that can occur in caregiving may mean that carers may only come to the attention of formal support services when a crisis occurs and informal care arrangements break down (Wenger, 1994).

Thu, 07/20/2017 - 15:19

Socio-economic status differences in older people's use of informal and formal help: a comparison of four European countries

This study investigates the variations by older people's socio-economic status (SES) (i.e. educational level and social class) in the use of informal and formal help from outside the household in Great Britain, Italy, Belgium and The Netherlands. In all these countries, it was older people in low SES groups who mostly used such help.

Thu, 07/20/2017 - 15:18

Home care in Italy: a system on the move, in the opposite direction to what we expect

For a long time, the international literature has described the Italian public system of home care for frail elderly people as underfunded and mostly cash-oriented; a system, thus, relying almost entirely on informal care provided by the family and, more recently, by migrant workers. Abroad and in Italy, most experts have long shared the expectation that, if and when, public expenditure devoted to home care was to increase, the outcome would be an expansion in the provision of services in kind. This study analyses how the provision of home care actually has changed in the last decade.

Thu, 07/20/2017 - 15:14

The commodification of care: the Italian way

Italy has one of the highest percentages of older people in Europe, a trend likely to increase faster than elsewhere alongside greater disability. Family support is also weaker through demographic developments and greater female participation in the labour market, and public policies for frail older people are underdeveloped with wide regional variations. The national scheme, the indemnita di accompagnamento (companion payment), is paid to approximately 7.3% of severely disabled people over 65 based on assessment of need.

Thu, 07/20/2017 - 15:13