Dementia is often referred to as the disease of caregivers due to the psychological and physical effects they undergo when a loved one is diagnosed with dementia. Caregivers play a vital role, supporting and assisting their loved ones with dementia in various aspects. Therefore, it is important to highlight and address caregivers and their situation they find themselves in to offer them adequate help and support. The aim of this study is to illuminate, based on current research, the support needs of caregivers of older adults with dementia and the availability and adequacy of the support provided. A qualitative method has been used for this work in the form of a literature review of previous research combined with fiction literature. A thematic text analysis has also been conducted based on the collected material. The results indicate that caregivers are affected to varying degrees by their loved ones with dementia. Prominent themes in the results include difficulties in accepting dementia and managing personality changes. Additionally, the results indicate that caregivers are at risk of negative mental and physical health outcomes in connection with caring for a loved one with dementia. Changes in relationships between the caregivers and the care recipient are common, as well as changes in relationships with other family members or friends. The results highlight existing support interventions for caregivers but also underscore deficiencies in the provided support, such as a lack of individually tailored support, accessibility, and information are highlighted. Moreover, the importance of informal support from friends and family for the caregivers is emphasized. This thesis demonstrates that there are significant deficiencies in the support provided to caregivers and that individual needs are not always met. There is a need for increased research focused solely on caregivers and their situation, to better support both the caregivers and the dementia- affected care recipient.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:mau-68324 |
| Date | January 2024 |
| Creators | Nikolic, Izabella, Sahlin, Sanja |
| Publisher | Malmö universitet, Fakulteten för hälsa och samhälle (HS) |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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