Centre for Policy on Ageing



Patterns and health effects of caring for people with dementia — the impact of changing cognitive and residential status
Corporate Author	Canadian Study of Health and Aging Working Group
Journal title	The Gerontologist, vol 42, no 5, October 2002
Pages	pp 643-652
Keywords	Health [elderly] ; Informal care ; Dementia ; Longitudinal surveys ; Canada.
Annotation	The caregivers of 948 people - mean age 86, and classified as demented, frail or healthy at two points in time from the Canadian Study of Health and Aging - reported on the care they provided and their own health outcomes. Caregiver burden scores were higher for those caring for people with dementia in the community than for those in institutions. However, these differences did not translate directly into contrasts in caregiver health. Caregivers of healthy elders reported fewer health problems than did caregivers for people with dementia or frailty, but the latter groups did not differ significantly. Death of the care recipient and admission to institutional care did not have a consistent impact on caregiver health. The study suggests that the relationship between caregiver load and health outcomes is complex and dynamic; treatments that slow the progression of dementia will not necessarily relieve caregiver strain. (RH).
Accession Number	CPA-021022214 A
Classmark	CC: P6: EA: 3J: 7S
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...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing.