BALANCING CARE FOR ANOTHER WITH CARE FOR SELF

Balancing care for another with care for self

Introduction

Twenty adults with learning difficulties (adults) living at home with family caregivers, especially parents and adults attending Training Centres (ATC) were interviewed about their everyday lives and information was also obtained formal and informal caregivers . The problem of dealing with the dangers of everyday life emerged as an important issue. The thought of adults and informal carers could be understood in terms of the moral dimension of risk, through the distinction between risk, to be calculated, and the dangers to be avoided. (Kanter 2009 pp.38) The role of work has changed throughout the world due to economic and social conditions demands. Originally, work was a matter of necessity and survival. Over the years, the role "work" has evolved and the composition of the workforce has changed. (Hammer 2003 pp.419)

Community care act.

The NHS and Community Care Act in 1990 divided the role of health authorities and local authorities, changing its internal structure, so that local government departments to assess the needs of local people and then buy the necessary services of 'suppliers'. To become "providers" in the internal market, health organizations became NHS trusts, which compete with each other. Community care provides individuals in need of long-term care are able to live, whether at home, with appropriate support, or in a residential home. (community care act of 1990 p.10)

At least 40% of individuals in Britain look after sick, disabled, and elderly relatives and friends for at least one year of their lives according to the British Household Panel Study (BHPS). The 2001 Census shows that there were about 5.2 million informal carers in England and Wales. The General Household Survey estimates the total number of carers to be 6.8 million for the whole of Great Britain in 2000 (ONS, 2000). The majority provides care for parents, friends and family living outside their own homes. However, there is also a rising number of carers looking after someone in their own home reflecting the growing preference of elderly people for non-residential care. (Goode 2008 pp.483)

Formal and informal carers for adults.

Several social and economic factors are likely to impact on the informal care market in the short and medium term. Increasing longevity and rising rates of disability will undoubtedly continue to increase the demand for care services. Furthermore, changing family patterns such as lower marriage rates, fewer children, greater geographic mobility, and declines in intergenerational co-residence are also likely to contribute to changes in informal care patterns over time as the vast majority of informal carers look after parents and spouses. (community care act of 1990 p.10)

Despite already higher than average labour market participation in Britain compared to most other European countries, the UK government is determined to increase it even further and exceed the employment targets set by the Lisbon Agenda in 2000. With individual's time being scarce, increasing demand for informal care provision may mitigate these ...