During the last few class sessions we were talking about the caregiving and specifically the benefits for the caregiver. As we have learned from the current event presentation caregiving is a long-term process and no one can be completely prepared for it, but it is highly recommended for the family members to have a conversation before the crisis in order to be more prepared. Even though we tend to think of caregiving as something almost negative and very stressful, at the same time it is the time to establish new relations, and even reconcile with your family members.
The article that I found was published just yesterday and talks about the results of the on-line survey that was conducted in the beginning of the month. The survey was conducted among 2,574 adults ages 18 and older. The purpose of the survey was to show the concerns that people who expect to be caregivers have, and the results were truly surprising – the number one concern listed was financial burden. 36 percent of the participants stated that they were not financially prepared to be a caregiver. The next two concerns (which got the same percentage) were time issue, and lack of the expertise about the disease or condition.
According to the article, it is expensive to be a caregiver, and the annual cost of caregiving is approximately $5,500 (based on the study by the National Alliance for Caregiving). Based on these findings it is easy to assume that people with a lower income would worry more about the potential financial burden than people from more affluent families, but the article showed that this assumption is not always true. About 35 percent of the research participants who said that they were unprepared for caregiving financially had annual household incomes of less than $35,000. At the same time 22 percent of people from more affluent families (with an income of more than $75,000) were also unprepared for the financial burden of being a caregiver.
In one of the classes we mentioned few burdens of the caregiving, including, but not limited to, time issues, increased workload, stress, multitasking. The article in turn made an excellent point that caregivers are bombarded with the information that they need to learn in a short period of time, including the information about the condition, the specific needs of a family member, strategies to manage financial resources, and their own lives. That is why 23 percent of participants listed lack of expertise as one of their major concerns.
Finally the article suggests that the best option is the home health care and since nearly 44 million Americans are taking care of an older family member at any given time, the caregiving issues were and still are widely researched and discussed. Finally the article provided very surprising findings - 89 percent of people age 50 and older want to remain in their homes and receive medical services as they age. I have always thought of the U.S. as a place where the vast majority of elders are dreaming to be in the nursing homes and long-term care facilities, because that is how it is portrayed to us, especially all the advertisements of these nursing homes that look like a paradise, but apparently American elders would rather get care from relatives.
Questions for the class:
1) As a potential caregiver what is your major concern?
2) Out of the three concerns listed in the article, which one would you rate the highest?
3) According to the article “42 percent of respondents say the word "nervous" best described how they felt about their current or future responsibility of being a caregiver for an elderly loved one”, how would you describe your feelings about your future responsibility of being a caregiver?
Link to the article:
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/many-americans-concerned-about-being-financially-ready-to-serve-as-caregivers-for-elderly-loved-one-new-amedisys-poll-shows-32-not-at-all-prepared-for-responsibility-2011-11-14
I think this article brings about an important point; a lot of us don't think about the financial aspect of having to support an elderly loved one. When my grandpa died, my dad took on the task of delving through my grandpas finances to determine what credit card bills needed to be taken care of, mortgages, debt, etc. Even though my grandma didn't need to be physically taken care of after her husband died, my dad had to discover how she would be able to survive on the money she had. He unfortunately found a lot of credit card debt that had to be taken of. So he has definitely had that financial burden that the article discusses.
ReplyDeleteAs a potential caregiver, my main concern would be proximity to my parents. I do not plan to live in my hometown in the future and wonder what will happen if I am far away and my parents are in need. I do have 2 younger sisters that could help, but I do not want to place all of the responsibility on them.
ReplyDeleteOut of the three listed concerns, I would also rate finances to be of the most concern to me. My wiki page was about caregiving and I learned that many caregivers are forced to leave their jobs in order to caregive. In some instances, even those with a large income prior to caregiving struggle with financial issues. This is very troubling for me and something that I would fear occurring if I was entering into the caregiving role.
I would also say that "nervous" would be a good way to describe how I feel about being a caregiver in the future. There are so many facets of caregiving, and what is right may not always be what is easiest. I want to do what is best for my parents, but what if that comes at the cost of my own happiness and ability to live my life? It's a very complex issue and one that I am certainly nervous to fall into one day.
Thank you Stephanie for sharing your grandmother's story. You brought an interesting perspective to this question - since caregivers need to deal with the financial aspects of their family member it may turn out that this person has credit card debts and mortgages that need to be taken care of and this brings an additional financial burden on the caregiver.
ReplyDeleteAs a potential caregiver, my main concern is time. I will feel obligated to live up to my commitment as a caregiver, however it will also be important that I continue my own life and am able to fulfill any obligations and commitments I have for myself. Devoting a lot of time to being a caregiver could be impossible if I don't live close enough
ReplyDeleteBeing a caregiver, to me, is like having a full-time job. It will involved much time management as well as playing strongly on my emotions.
I agree with the financial issues coming into play with being a caregiver. That would be a hard to deal with. I think another thing I would be concerned with is how it would effect my life. I would be spending a lot of time caring for the person and it might end up effecting my family, my life, or career. I guess that would a sacrifice that you would be willing to take if it meant caring for a loved one.
ReplyDeleteI found it surprising that financial burden was the top concern for caregivers. Caregiving is a very costly job, but there is no assisstance given to caregivers. I beleive that the government should step in and provied benefits for caregivers. This could come in the form of a tax deduction and would provide immediate and significant help for caregivers. We are already allowed an exemption for children on our taxes and I believe that caregivers should be allowed an extra exemption on their taxes.
ReplyDeleteI hope in the future my main concern will be the lack of expertise. I would love to help our my family financially if I could and my parents have sacrificed their time for me in many instances, I think giving my time is the least I can do to help them. However, it should be a joint effort of all of the family members so that it will not be as heavy as a burden to any one person. I have two other siblings and I think we should split responsibility equally to care for my parents in later life. Also, I think the government is a bit strict on who they help financially and who they don't. It is a bit ridiculous that those that actually pay taxes will not be able to benefit from them in later life through financial aid of later life expenses.
ReplyDeleteI think for me, time will be a main concern for caregiving. If I have my own career and family, it may be hard to find the time to also be a caregiver to my parents. Finances would also be a concern because it can be expensive to be a caregiver.
ReplyDeleteI would say that my biggest concern about being a caregiver is that I would forget about my needs, and stretch myself thin. We have discussed in class how important it is that the caregiver makes sure they are taking care of themselves, but it is so easy to forget about your needs when you are concerned about the needs of everyone around you. My aunt is currently caring for my uncle because he recently had quadruple bipass heart surgery, and she was telling us how hard it is and that she doesn't sleep because she is so worried about his health. I think this is something that would happen to me, but you need to be aware of your needs as well.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with Stephen's idea of a tax deduction. Most of the states now are switching from nursing homes to the home-care, and taking into consideration the cost of the nursing homes, more and more people would choose to be primary caregivers for as long as possible. I would love to see Russian and American government to provide benefits to encourage caregivers!
ReplyDelete