{"id":1614,"date":"2018-08-29T10:49:29","date_gmt":"2018-08-29T14:49:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/?p=1614"},"modified":"2018-08-29T10:49:29","modified_gmt":"2018-08-29T14:49:29","slug":"managing-multiple-health-conditions-what-care-recipients-and-caregivers-want-each-other-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/managing-multiple-health-conditions-what-care-recipients-and-caregivers-want-each-other-to-know\/","title":{"rendered":"Managing Multiple Health Conditions: What Care Recipients and Caregivers Want Each Other to Know"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Journal of the American Geriatrics Society<\/span><\/em>\u00a0Research Summary<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

In the United States, four out of five older adults have multiple chronic health<\/a>\u00a0conditions<\/a>. Many of these people rely on the active support of a family caregiver<\/a> to help manage their conditions.<\/p>\n

Studies of older adults with dementia<\/a> and their caregivers have shown that very often, the older adult\u2019s desire to be self-sufficient often clashes with the caregiver\u2019s concerns about the individual\u2019s safety. However, researchers have also identified areas of friction among older adults who do not have dementia and their caregivers.<\/p>\n

For example, according to one study among older adults who have severe heart disease<\/a>, these individuals don\u2019t appreciate unwanted or excessive phone contact\u2014or advice they haven\u2019t requested\u2014from family and friends. In another study, older adults with lupus<\/a>\u00a0(an autoimmune disease caused when your immune system attacks your own body tissue) said they\u2019d received advice from friends and family that they felt wasn\u2019t well-informed. They also reported they received support that felt \u201coverprotective.\u201d<\/p>\n

Noting that we need more understanding of caregiver and care recipient relationships, a research team designed a study using interviews with caregivers and the older adults receiving care. These interviews were designed to explore experiences, attitudes, and preferences about caregiving relationships. The study appeared in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The researchers recruited older adults from primary-care and specialty clinics and from assisted-living facilities in Connecticut. The care recipients were 65-years-old or older, had more than two chronic conditions, did not have problems thinking or making decisions, and had an unpaid caregiver (relative or friend) who was involved in their health care.<\/p>\n

The older adults were first asked to name their chronic conditions, and then to describe how their caregivers helped them manage those conditions. Researchers also learned about the care recipients\u2019 reactions to the assistance they received. Caregivers were invited to respond to their care recipients\u2019 answers, provide their own examples, and discuss how they felt about the assistance they provided.<\/p>\n

After the interview, the care recipients completed a questionnaire about age, gender, race, education, marital status, living arrangements, and their relationship to their caregivers. Caregivers completed a separate questionnaire about their age, gender, race, education, marital and employment status, and living arrangements.<\/p>\n

The care recipients were around 82-years-old; most were white and female. Caregivers were around 70-years-old, two-thirds were women, and most were either a spouse or an adult child of the person receiving care.<\/p>\n

The researchers learned about caregiving activities that were common to most caregiver\/care recipient pairs. These included managing medications, coordinating healthcare appointments, managing paid caregivers, and speaking with medical professionals.<\/p>\n

Relationships that were \u201csupportive\u201d included these behaviors:<\/p>\n