The Burden of Caring for a Family Member with Alzheimer's Disease

It explored how the family caregiving setting, demographic characteristics of the patient and caregiver, and gracelessness of the patient's functional deficit qualified the relationship between institutionalization and changes in family members' health and well-being.

Families for the study were recruited from eight university-based Alzheimer's centers in California. Criteria for acceptance in the study were a diagnosis of probable or affirmable Alzheimer's disease; at least one adult matter living in California; and the patient living in the community, either with a spouse or the offspring. Two-hundred and thirty atomic number 23 families qualified for the study, including 89 spou

ses, 184 offspring, and 136 in-laws; 87.7 share were Caucasian and 12.1 percent were ethnic minorities.

The patients were divided into deuce groups: those institutionalised within six months of diagnosis, and those not institutionalized for two historic period following diagnosis. Patients and spouses were contacted first, then the offspring most involved in patient care, then an in-law not married to the selected offspring. They were asked to contain out questionnaires, and to do so every 6 months for two years and take part in a shortened telephone interview.

The results of this study showed that caregiver health and well-being were not improved by institutionalization of the Alzheimer's patient. Although the burden of caregiving was removed, the emotional dysphoria that freque
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