Search

Purpose: Specific stressors associated with caregiving in Mexican American (MA) families are not well documented, yet caregiving issues are paramount because informal care for parents is central to their culture. Although MA families who band together to provide care for one member are not unique, the literature does not describe the phenomenon of collective caregiving, which may be widespread but unrecognized. This article describes these understudied families who are poorly served by contemporary health systems because their characteristics are unknown. Design: Descriptive, multisite, longitudinal mixed-methods study of MA caregiving families. Findings: We identified three types of collective caregivers: those providing care for multiple family members simultaneously, those providing care successively to several family members, and/or those needing care themselves during their caregiving of others. Discussion and Conclusions: Collective caregiving of MA elders warrants further investigation. Implications for Practice: Exploration of collective caregiving may provide a foundation for tailored family interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Palliative and end-of-life care (PEOLC) in Mexican American (MA) caregiving families remains unexplored. Its onset was uncovered in our mixed methods, multisite, interdisciplinary, qualitative descriptive study of 116 caregivers, most of whom had provided long-term informal home care for chronically ill, disabled older family members. This subanalysis used Life Course Perspective to examine the “point of reckoning” in these families, where an older person is taken in for care, or care escalates until one recognizes oneself as the primary caregiver. Ninety-three of 116 caregivers recognized and spontaneously reported a “reckoning point” that initiated the caregiving trajectory, while eight cited “gradual decline” into caregiving for elders in their homes. This “reckoning point,” which marks the assumption of this role, may afford a fertile opportunity for referral to community resources or initiation of formal PEOLC, thereby improving the quality of life for these older individuals and their families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This mixed methods, multi-site, National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)-funded, interdisciplinary, descriptive study aimed to identify expressions of worry in qualitative data obtained from caregiving Mexican American (MA) families assisting older adults. The purpose of this portion of the inquiry was to determine how worry is expressed, what happens to caregivers when they worry, and what adaptive strategies they used. We examined semi-structured interviews completed during six in-home visits with 116 caregivers. We identified 366 worry quotations from 639 primary documents in ATLAS.ti, entered them into matrices, and organized findings under thematic statements. Caregivers expressed cultural and contextual worries, worried about transitions and turning points in care, and identified adaptive strategies. Despite these strategies, worry persisted. Constant worry may be an allied, important aspect of caregiver burden. We need additional longitudinal research to better understand the experience of MA caregivers for older adults and to provide empirically supported interventions, programs, and services that reduce worry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: To examine how perceived balance problems are associated with self‐reported falls in the past month after controlling for known correlates of falls among older adults. Background: Approximately 30% of adults age 65 and older fall each year. Most accidental falls are preventable, and older adults' engagement in fall prevention is imperative. Limited research suggest that older adults do not use the term 'fall risk' to describe their risk for falls. Instead, they commonly use the term 'balance problems'. Yet, commonly used fall risk assessment tools in both primary and acute care do not assess older adults' perceived balance. Design and Method: The Health Belief Model and the concept of perceived susceptibility served as the theoretical framework. A retrospective, cross‐sectional secondary analysis using data from the National Health and Aging Trends Study from year 2015 was conducted. The outcome variable was self‐reported falls in the last month. Results: A subsample of independently living participants (N = 7499) was selected, and 10.3% of the sample reported a fall. Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that the odds of reporting a fall in the past month was 3.4 times (p <.001) greater for participants who self‐reported having a balance problem compared to those who did not. In contrast, fear of falling and perceived memory problems were not uniquely associated with falls. Using a mobility device, reporting pain, poor self‐rated health status, depression and anxiety scores were also associated with falling. Conclusion and Implications: Older adults' perceived balance problem is strongly associated with their fall risk. Perceived balance may be important to discuss with older adults to increase identification of fall risk. Older adults' perceived balance should be included in nursing fall risk assessments and fall prevention interventions. A focus on balance may increase older adults' engagement in fall prevention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives. Guided by a Sociocultural Health Belief Model (SHBM), this study examined the roles of cultural beliefs of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and scientific knowledge of AD in influencing the perceived threat of AD in a sample of Chinese American older adults. Method. With the input from focus groups of 17 older Chinese volunteers, survey questionnaires were refined and then delivered through face-to-face interviews to 385 participants aged 55–100 in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Results. Hierarchical regression analyses found that those aged 55–64 were more worried about AD than those aged 85 or older. Both cultural beliefs of AD and AD factual knowledge contributed to higher levels of perceived threat of AD. Education tended to moderate the effect of cultural beliefs of AD and AD knowledge on perceived threat of AD. Discussions. Findings support inclusion of key factors in the SHBM relevant to perceived threat of AD and help enrich the understanding of AD literacy from both scientific and cultural perspectives. AD education programs and interventions should help address crucial cultural beliefs related to AD and the emotional consequences (e.g., concerns or fear of AD) that might be due to the exposure to AD factual knowledge, particularly for those with limited education. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]