Survey results

Of the UK‟s approximately six million carers, around half are aged over 50. A recent survey of carers in England showed that people near or over retirement age undertake a high proportion of caring.

This article presents the results of a survey of patients’ and carers’ views about a community matron service in England. Key themes identified by patients and carers included the reliability of the service, the confidence it gave to patients and carers, improved links with GP services, and anecdotal evidence that the service helped to avoid admission to hospital. The authors believe the survey demonstrates a positive view of the community matron service which justifies continued investment in the role.

As the location of long-term care of elderly people moves to homes and communities, and responsibility for care shifts to families, understanding the experience of people in this situation is necessary to ensure that support is appropriate, accessible and effective. The present paper explores informal caregivers’ and recipients’ relationships with formal support, drawing on thematic and narrative analysis of 30 in-depth interviews with self-identified family caregivers conducted over a year in a mid-size city in Ontario, Canada.

Background: The end of life may be a time of high service utilisation for older adults. Transitions between care settings occur frequently, but may produce little improvement in symptom control or quality of life for patients. Ensuring that patients experience co-ordinated care, and moves occur because of individual needs rather than system imperatives, is crucial to patients’ well-being and to containing health-care costs.

An investigation of people's attitudes, understanding and expectations of their individual or collective rights and responsibilities in old age.

This paper reports on interviews with 30 carers of working age in north-west England. Respondents revealed a general dissatisfaction with government initiatives and policy. The findings suggest that in the main either the policy, or its implementation at grassroots level, or both have little impact. 

Background Previous studies have highlighted the effects of informal caring on mental health, but evidence for its wider impact remains scant. We explored associations between informal care and a range of health (and health-related) measures. We also considered previously neglected differences between informal care ‘at home’ and care elsewhere, along with neighbourhood attachment as a possible modifier of the associations we found.

This small-scale survey explored how effectively young carers were identified by councils and their partners. It also examined the assessment and delivery of services for young carers and their families. It drew on evidence from visits to eight council areas, focus groups with young carers and meetings with those who provide young carer support services