Caring.com recently released the results of a study in which 86 percent of caregivers said that caregiving impacted their work situation because they had to take time away from their jobs, quit, retire early, reduce hours, or take a leave of absence.
Twenty-five percent of respondents also stated that they suffer from depression, well above the national figure of 9 percent cited in a 2010 study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Caregivers are turning to their churches, synagogues, mosques, or other religious organizations (31 percent). Family caregivers are also seeking support online (25 percent) via discussion forums, chat rooms, and through social networks such as Facebook.
Independently, in my role outside of about.com, my company is conducting a caregiver survey to measure some of the same things that Caring.com measured except our findings will be used to build a caregivers' smart phone application. The survey is still open.
Additional findings include:
- A third (32 percent) of family caregivers spend more than 30 hours per week on caregiving tasks.
- Seventy-seven percent of caregivers are concerned about the impact of their caregiving on their savings.
- The majority of family caregivers suffer from their own health issues, including high blood pressure (35 percent), arthritis (30 percent), and high cholesterol (28 percent).
- Over half (53 percent) of respondents report having trouble falling or staying asleep due to stress.
The caregiver site shared these results in conjunction with the launching of their new initiative for caregivers called Steps and Stages, which provides caregiver support specific to the Alzheimer's stage their loved one is experiencing.
In an "Ask Medicare" tip sheet for caregivers, Medicare offers these suggestions for caregivers to help take care of their own health.
- Identify local support services.
- Ask for help. They even mention "Lotsa Helping Hands" , an intiative we have blogged about recently.
- Make connections with others.
- Take care of your own health.
How are you as an aging services provider plugged into the resources that can help caregivers in your community? You should be. As the continuum of care blurs caregivers will need even more help in navigating the health care system. If you can help them, that would create what you have read here before, tipping points for these same people to choose your organization for care when the time is right.
Helping caregivers - not only the right thing to do but the revenue wise thing to do.
Learn more ~ or join the conversation!
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