When the Caregiver Becomes the Patient
2008-Nov-20
By
-- Robert Preidt
THURSDAY, Nov. 20 (HealthDay News) -- The stress of providing
care for a loved one with Alzheimer's results in 25 percent of
family caregivers having at least one emergency room or hospital
visit every six months, says an Indiana University study.
It's long been recognized that family care of an Alzheimer's
patient is difficult, but the Indiana University researchers said
their study is the first to actually measure the stress and examine
how it affects the physical and mental health of caregivers.
The study included 153 Alzheimer's patients and their family
caregivers, for a total of 366 people. Forty-four percent of the
caregivers were spouses, and 70 percent lived with their
Alzheimer's-afflicted loved one. The average age of the caregivers
was 61 years.
Age, education and relationship to the patient didn't affect
caregivers' use of emergency room/hospital services, the
researchers found. The behavior and functioning of the patient, not
their cognitive disability, were the major factors that determined
whether a caregiver went to the emergency room/hospital.
The study was published in the November issue of the
Journal of General Internal Medicine
.
"Our findings opened our minds to the fact that society needs to
expand the definition of patient to include both the person with
Alzheimer's dementia and that individual's family caregiver," study
corresponding author Dr. Malaz Boustani, an assistant professor of
medicine, said in an Indiana University new release.
"For American society to respond to the growing epidemic of
Alzheimer's disease, the health care system needs to re-think the
definition of patient. These findings alert health-care delivery
planners that they need to restructure the health care system to
accommodate our new inclusive definition of patient," said
Boustani, who directs the Healthy Aging Brain Center.
About four million older adults in the United States have
Alzheimer's disease, and three million of them live in the
community, often under the care of family members. By 2050, it's
estimated there will be 18.5 million people with Alzheimer's in the
U.S.
"While we've long known that Alzheimer's is a devastating
disease to the patient, this study offers a look at how it also
impacts the caregiver's health. If we don't offer help and support
to the caregiver too, the stress of caring for someone with
dementia can be overwhelming, both mentally and physically," Dr.
Cathy C. Schubert, an assistant professor of clinical medicine in
the IU School of Medicine, said in the news release.
More information
The Alzheimer's Association has more about
caregiver's stress
.
HealthDay News
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. All rights reserved.
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