Respite Use of Dementia Caregivers:

Abstract

Qualitative analysis of open-ended responses provided a dynamic perspective of respite use among caregivers of relatives with dementia. One hundred spouses and adult children were interviewed regarding their use of respite services. Differences between spouses coresiding adult children, and adult children living in a separate residence emerged. These three groups differed in their preferences for method of service delivery (i.e., sitter, daycare, overnight), their perceptions of the usefulness of services, their emotional response to the service, and the situations or events that were perceived as prompting the use of services. There were no differences in the care recipient's level of functional impairment across the three groups. Adult child and spousal caregivers may form three distinct populations that utilize respite services in different ways.