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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Zabedah Saad, MA, Research Associate, Center for Aging and Healthcare, in West Virginia, Inc., 517 Market Street, Dils Center, Parkersburg, WV 26101, 304-422-2853, zabedahsaad@hotmail.com, Brenda Wamsley, MSW, Executive Director, Center for Aging & Healthcare in West Virginia, 517 Market Street, Dils Building, Parkersburg, WV 26101, and Gerald M. Eggert, PhD, Executive Director, Monroe County Long Term Care Program, Inc./ACCESS, 349 West Commercial Street, Suite 2250, East Rochester, NY 14445.
The elderly population in the United States is growing faster than most others. In 1990, the total percentage of elderly, 65 years old and over, in the United States was 12.6% (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1994); in 1998, the percentage increased to 14.2% (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 2000). Since the elderly community increased in recent years and the support of home and community-based services by the government has encouraged impaired elderly to live in the community, spousal caregiving has become a common phenomenon in older adult married couples. Spousal caregiving is not only experienced by women, but it is also a responsibility of many men. Spousal caregiving is perceived as stressful by many because they themselves are old and have health-related problems. In this study, we will examine spouses’ level of stress associated with caregiving. Data from a study titled “A Randomized Controlled Trial of Primary and Consumer-Directed Care for People with Chronic Illness” (CMS No. 95C-90467/2-01) will be examined. Furthermore, we will examine several factors that have an impact on the caregivers’ level of stress. We predicted that the caregivers’ level of stress is associated with their length of marriage, number of years that the spouse has been a primary caregiver to the patient, children or family interaction, and gender. It is important to examine these factors because spousal caregivers’ level of stress has a significant impact on the overall marital relationship of the impaired elderly. Final results will be presented.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Caregivers, Stress
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.