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Page 1: Research About Family Caregivers Becoming More Urgent

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Research About Family Caregivers Becoming MoreUrgent

It is encouraging to see research being done in the area offamily caregiving, such as Sara Meller’s recent article.1 As thepopulation ages, the incidence of Alzheimer’s disease, Parkin-son’s, stroke, hip fractures and other chronic medical condi-tions becomes greater. According to a study conducted by theUS General Accounting Office in 1994, it is estimated thatthe number of older persons needing long-term care may asmuch as double over the next 25 years.2

Although Meller’s study adds to the body of knowledge,most long-term care occurs in the home, and that cost isprimarily borne by family members. For example, the averageUS cost of caring for an elder with Alzheimer’s in the homeis in the range of $31,000 to $35,000 per year.3 Also it shouldbe noted, there is not yet a study that can quantify the socialand emotional toll on caregivers.

Additionally, a MetLife Study of Employer Costs for Work-ing Caregivers, indicates that 23% of US households areinvolved in caregiving, 64.2% of caregivers are employed, and14.4 million full-time and part-time employed caregivers arebalancing work with caregiving.4 The cost to American busi-nesses was estimated to be $29 billion a year. These costs stemfrom lost productivity on the job, absenteeism, workday in-terruptions, eldercare crises, supervisor’s time in dealing withcaregiver issues, and replacement of employees who quit be-cause of their caregiving concerns. The study indicates that10% of all working caregivers quit because of caregivingduties. This is an issue that impacts many of us and should notbe ignored.

Meller’s article focuses on caregivers of hospitalized elderly,and she concludes that the burden of caregiving is decreasedafter the placement of an elder. This conclusion does notaccount for the complexities of the caregiving experience. Itdoes not discuss the fact that many families cannot possiblybring themselves to placing a loved one in a nursing home or

other institutional setting even when the caregiving seemsinsurmountable. Additionally, at least in the United States,the financial burden of nursing home costs is often too great,especially if the elder’s income falls above the allowable rangefor Medicaid long-term care benefits. Even when a familyplaces a loved one, they often cannot give up their caregivingduties and find themselves spending hours at the nursinghome attending to their loved one’s needs.

In the book Taking Care of Aging Family Members, theauthors state, “Giving care to an ill relative can be one of themost lonely and thankless experiences of a person’s lifetime. Itcan also be one of the most moving and satisfying.”5

The question here is “Exactly what is a family’s obligationwhen it comes to eldercare?” This is something that everycaregiving family struggles with even after the death of anelder. There is no easy solution. We need to continue in ourefforts of understanding the impacts of caregiving and work-ing to create policies and programs that more effectively meetthe needs of these families who struggle on a daily basis.

Elizabeth Heck, LCSWUCLA Department of Social

Welfare

References1. Meller S. A comparison of the well-being of family caregivers of elderly

patients hospitalized with physical impairments versus the caregivers ofpatients hospitalized with dementia. J Am Med Dir Assoc 2001;2:60–65.

2. US General Accounting Office. Long-term care: Diverse, growing popu-lation includes millions of Americans of all ages. Washington, DC: USGeneral Accounting Office, November 7, 1994. Publication HEHS–95–26.

3. Ernst R, Hay J. The US economic and social cost of Alzheimer’s diseaserevisited. Am J Public Health 1994;84:1261–1264.

4. MetLife Mature Market Group and the National Alliance for Caregiving.MetLife Study of Employer Costs for Working Caregivers. Westport, CT:MetLife Mature Market Group and the National Alliance for Caregiving,June, 1997. For copies, call 301–718–8444 or visit www.caregiving.org.

5. Lustbader W, and Hooyman N. Taking Care of Aging Family Members–APractical Guide. Seattle, WA: Free Press, 1994.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR 139