Abstract
The present study aimed to understand the meaning of the care attributed by the family caregiver of a dependent elderly member. It is a descriptive study of qualitative approach. The collection of data was made by semi-structured interviews with 19 family caregivers. The data analysis was based in the Thematic Analysis. The results showed that the meaning of taking care was attributed to some characteristics of caregiving and they were considered as a difficult and tiresome task, with lot of responsibility, dedication, courage and it requires a lot of patience and determination, besides being accomplished with a lot of love, attention, affection and pleasure, together with feelings of obligation, duty and retribution added to the good moments lived with the elderly. Knowing the meaning of caregiving through the caregiver allows us to analyze the assumed responsibilities and to detect the need of social support, contributing to a better assistance and quality of life on the part of the elderly, the caregiver and the family.
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