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Aims and objectives.  The purpose of this article is to describe the problem-solving abilities of Hong Kong family carers looking after a stroke patients at home and report the relationships between their perceived problem-solving abilities with their depression level, general health status, and the functional recovery of stroke patients.

Reports on findings from the carer component of the Gwynedd Dementia Study. It is based on carer interviews, using quantitative and qualitative data. It describes the carers, their perceptions of their dependents' problems, the common challenges they face, their experiences of formal and informal support and, with reference to the literature, identifies implications for policy and practice. Levels of formal service inputs were low, but most of the carers appeared to receive the services they needed.

A variation of the stress, appraisal, and coping model was used to examine the negative and positive consequences of providing care to a person diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Data were collected from a sample of 113 Hispanic and non-Hispanic adult children who were providing care to impaired parents. Results showed that the Hispanic caregivers were more likely to be experiencing less depression, lower levels of role captivity, and higher amounts of self-acceptance than the non-Hispanic (White) caregivers.

Carers have an enormous amount of responsibility for the welfare and management of people with a mental illness in Britain, and many require help if they are to continue caring. Mental health nurses may be in a key position to offer support, but they are often unclear of what is required and how it should be delivered. Existing UK nurse-led psychosocial interventions for families often focus on the needs of the patient rather than the carer. This article describes a needs-led support service that has been designed for carers whose relatives are diagnosed with schizophrenia.

This study evaluated the impact of a Cambridge hospital at home service (CHAH) on patients' quality of care, likelihood of remaining at home in their final 2 weeks of life and general practitioner (GP) visits. The design was a randomized controlled trial, comparing CHAH with standard care. The patient's district nurse, GP and informal carer were surveyed within 6 weeks of patient's death, and 225 district nurses, 194 GPs and 144 informal carers of 229 patients responded. There was no clear evidence that CHAH increased likelihood of remaining at home during the final 2 weeks of life.

Dementia is a neurodegenerative disorder that can have a severe effect on the quality of life of individuals with the condition, and can place considerable strain on informal carers and healthcare systems. Research is required to identify ways to prevent or delay the onset of dementia. The government is committed to dementia research, yet funding for dementia research is eclipsed by funding for research into other conditions. Moreover, dementia research can only progress if individuals with the condition participate in research studies.

There is currently much policy emphasis on both partnership working between health and social services in the UK and on the outcomes delivered by services. This article provides an account of two consecutive projects centred on these two themes. The first project, at the University of Glasgow, sought to address the lack of evidence about the outcomes delivered to service users by partnerships.

Purpose. About 30% of the people with multiple sclerosis (MS) require some form of home care assistance and 80% of that assistance is provided by informal or unpaid care givers. This study focusses on the care givers for 530 more disabled people with MS, with the objective of learning more about informal care giving to people with greater dependency and need for assistance.

Method. The data presented in this study were collected in a national survey of 530 people who provided informal care to more disabled people with MS.