Information Category
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Areas to Assess
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Possible Questions
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Context
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♦ Caregiver relationship to care recipient
♦ Physical environment (home, facility)
♦ Household status (number in home, etc.)
♦ Financial status
♦ Quality of family relationships
♦ Duration of caregiving
♦ Employment status (work/home/ volunteer)
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♦ What is the caregiver’s relationship to the care recipient?
♦ How long has he/she been in the caregiving role?
♦ Does the care recipient live in the same household with the caregiver?
♦ Is the caregiver married? Have children? How many people live in the caregiver’s household?
♦ Are other family members or friends involved in the care?
♦ Is the caregiver currently employed? Full-time or part-time?
♦ What is the caregiver’s household income?
♦ How would the caregiver rate his/her quality of family relationships?
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Caregiver’s Perception of Health and Functional Status of Care Recipient
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♦ Activities of daily living (ADLs; bathing, dressing) and need for supervision
♦ Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs; managing finances, using the telephone)
♦ Psycho-social needs
♦ Cognitive impairment
♦ Behavioral problems
♦ Medical tests and procedures
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♦ Can the care recipient carry out ADLs without assistance (bathing, dressing, etc.)?
♦ Can the care recipient carry out IADLs without assistance (managing finances, shopping)?
♦ Can the care recipient administer his/her medications correctly?
♦ Does the care recipient have any mental health diagnoses or emotional problems?
♦ Does the care recipient have any memory loss or cognitive impairment?
♦ Does the care recipient have any behavioral problems? How frequently do they occur and how much do they bother or upset the caregiver when they happen?
♦ What medical tests and procedures have been done or are needed?
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Caregiver Values and Preferences
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♦ Caregiver/care recipient willingness to assume/accept care
♦ Perceived filial obligation to provide care
♦ Culturally based norms
♦ Preferences for scheduling and delivery of care and services
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♦ Is the caregiver willing to assume the caregiver role? Is the care recipient willing to accept care?
♦ Does the caregiver feel he/she is obligated to provide care?
♦ What types of care arrangements are considered culturally acceptable for this family?
♦ What are the caregiver’s (and the care recipient’s) preferences for the scheduling and delivery of care and services?
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Well-being of the Caregiver
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♦ Self-rated health
♦ Health conditions and symptoms
♦ Depression or other emotional distress (e.g., anxiety)
♦ Life satisfaction/quality of life
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♦ How does the caregiver rate his/her own health? Does the caregiver rate his/her health better, about the same, or worse than it was 6 months ago?
♦ Does the caregiver have any health conditions or symptoms?
♦ How often in the past 6 months has the caregiver had a medical exam or received treatment for physical health problems from a health care practitioner?
♦ Depression Scale (See Selected Measures in Appendix III)
♦ How often does the caregiver feel anxious or angry when he/she is around the care recipient?
♦ How often does the caregiver get a full night’s sleep?
♦ How does the caregiver rate his/her life satisfaction and/or quality of life?
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Consequences of Caregiving
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♦ Perceived challenges
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Social isolation
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Work strain
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Emotional and physical health strain
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Financial strain
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Family relationship strain
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Difficulties with formal providers
♦ Perceived benefits
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Satisfaction of helping family member
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Developing new skills and competencies
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Improved family relationships
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♦ Perceived challenges
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Does the caregiver have a social support network or is he/she isolated?
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Does the caregiver suffer any work-related difficulties due to the caregiving role?
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Does the caregiver suffer from any emotional and/or physical health problems as a result of caregiving?
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How much does the caregiver’s health stand in the way of doing things he/she wants to do?
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What has been the financial strain, if any, on the caregiver due to his/her caregiving role?
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How much disagreement has the caregiver experienced with other family members over particular care issues?
♦ Perceived benefits
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Does the caregiver feel satisfaction in helping a family member?
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Does the caregiver feel he/she has developed new skills and knowledge as a result of caregiving?
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Has there been an improvement in family relationships (general closeness, communication, similarity of views, degree of getting along) as a result of the caregiving situation?
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Caregiver Skills/ Abilities/Knowledge to Provide Care
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♦ Caregiving confidence and competencies
♦ Appropriate knowledge of medical care tasks (wound care, etc.)
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♦ How knowledgeable does the caregiver feel about the care recipient’s condition?
♦ What are the skills and abilities needed to provide care for the care recipient?
♦ How would the caregiver rate his/her confidence and competence in these areas?
♦ Does the caregiver have the appropriate knowledge of medical care tasks (wound care, ability to administer medications correctly, etc.) and transfer techniques (moving from bed to chair, etc.)
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Caregiver Resources
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♦ Helping network and perceived social support
♦ Existing or potential strengths (e.g., what is presently going well)
♦ Coping strategies
♦ Financial resources (health care and service benefits, entitlements such as Veteran’s Affairs, Medicare)
♦ Community resources and services (caregiver support programs, religious organizations, volunteer agencies)
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♦ Can the caregiver rely on his/her social support network for help (i.e. respite)?
♦ What are the caregiver’s coping strategies? Are these healthy/constructive?
♦ Has the caregiver accessed all financial benefits and entitlements he/she or care recipient is eligible for (e.g., Veteran’s Affairs)?
♦ What other community resources/services is the caregiver utilizing or aware of (e.g., caregiver support groups, religious organizations)?
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