Category: Dementia – Supporting Carers

An explorative paper to describe how family carers, through the caregiving journey, reaffirm and promote the agency of people with dementia.

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The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) is a self-report measure of anxiety and depression. It is recommended for clinical assessment and has been used as the primary outcome in large clinical trials with carers of people with dementia. Its validity and utility have never been examined in this population. The current study addresses this.

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Spousal dementia carers have unique support needs; they are likely to disengage from their existing social networks as they need to devote more time to caring as the disease progresses.

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This article investigates informal caregivers’ psychological well-being and predicted increase in psychological well-being, when caring for persons with dementia (PwDs) living at home, related to caregiver, PwD and formal care (FC) factors.

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Family carers are fundamental to supporting people with dementia to remain at home; however psychological distress can occur as a result of their caring role. Research into the effectiveness of interventions for caregivers of people diagnosed with Young-Onset Dementia (YOD), the experience of those using such interventions, and the mediating processes, are limited.
The study highlighted several interrelated themes involving creating connections to carers with similar experiences, social learning, and supportive learning through group structure and facilitation. Many of the processes are found within existing dementia caregiver intervention research. Implications for service provision and future research are outlined.

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The main body of literature investigating experiences of caring for a spouse with dementia has focussed on the experiences of receiving a diagnosis and on caring in the early stages of the disorder. This study aimed to gain an in-depth understanding of caring for a spouse at home in rural areas with moderate to severe dementia.
The results revealed four themes; changes in the spousal relationship, the demands of caring, managing the demands and unmet needs. Participants’ accounts illustrated the complexity of caring for someone with moderate to severe dementia and the psychological and practical resources that are required in order to be able to continue to do so.

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Parents’ love for their child, even a child who has severe impairments, may give them much joy and quality in their life. This is also the case for caregivers of adults with severe cognitive impairments, such as end-stage dementia. How can clinicians work with these parents and caregivers and help them?

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Accurate assessment of caregiver functioning is of great importance to gain better insight into daily caregiver functioning and to prevent high levels of burden. The experience sampling methodology (ESM) is an innovative approach to assess subjective experiences and behavior within daily life.

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It has been reported that something as simple as taking more walks in the park or more time for reading books could protect the physical health of caregivers. This editorial reviews possible mechanisms linking pleasant leisure activities with lower blood pressure in caregivers and discuss potential barriers that prevent caregivers from engaging in pleasant leisure activities.

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Elevated blood pressure is a significant public health concern, particularly given its association with cardiovascular disease risk, including stroke. Caring for a loved one with Alzheimer disease has been associated with physical health morbidity, including higher blood pressure. Engagement in adaptive coping strategies may help prevent blood pressure elevation in this population.

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