Managing multiple health conditions
Studies of older adults with dementia and their caregivers have shown that very often, the older adult’s desire to be self-sufficient often clashes with the caregiver’s concerns about the individual’s safety. However, researchers have also identified areas of friction among older adults who do not have dementia and their caregivers.
For example, according to one study among older adults who have severe heart disease, these individuals don’t appreciate unwanted or excessive phone contact–or advice they haven’t requested–from family and friends. In another study, older adults with lupus (an autoimmune disease caused when your immune system attacks your own body tissue) said they’d received advice from friends and family that they felt wasn’t well-informed. They also reported they received support that felt “overprotective.”
Noting that we need more understanding of caregiver and care recipient relationships, a research team designed a study using interviews with caregivers and the older adults receiving care. These interviews were designed to explore experiences, attitudes, and preferences about caregiving relationships. The study appeared in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.
The researchers recruited older adults from primary-care and specialty clinics and from assisted-living facilities in Connecticut. The care recipients were 65-years-old or older, had more than two chronic conditions, did not have problems thinking or making decisions, and had an unpaid caregiver (relative or friend) who was involved in their health care.
The older adults were first asked to name their chronic conditions, and then to describe how their caregivers helped them manage those conditions. Researchers also learned about the care recipients’ reactions to the assistance they received. Caregivers were invited to respond to their care recipients’ answers, provide their own examples, and discuss how they felt about the assistance they provided.