In Sickness and in Health: Spousal Caregivers and The Correlates of Caregiver Outcomes

Abstract

Marriage vows frequently include a promise to take care of each other in sickness. For some, caring for the sick spouse is an integral part of marital life. For others, it is a burden that breaks the marriage. For older couples, who have shared a portion of their life together, caregiving seems to grow into a routine affair. Because of this routineness, partners may not define themselves as caregivers. Although spouses provide a significant amount of caregiving to older adults with functional disability, they have received limited attention from researchers and policy-makers. Medical Care Activities Among Spouses of Older Adults With Functional Disability: Implications for Caregiving Difficulties and GainsThe American Journal of Geriatric PsychiatryVol. 25Issue 10PreviewSpouses of older adults with functional disability often provide help with their partner's medical care. Yet little is known about the implications of these activities for spouses' caregiving experiences. We examined how spouses' medical care activities are linked to both positive and negative aspects of caregiving (difficulties and gains), and whether these associations vary by their age, gender, or education. Full-Text PDF