Abuse of older Chinese with dementia by family caregivers: an inquiry into the role of caregiver burden

Abstract

Verbal and physical abuse were highly prevalent among this population of older Chinese with dementia. A higher level of caregiver stress is related to a higher level of verbal, but not physical abuse inflicted by the caregivers of these older persons with dementia.

Elder Abuse in Chinese Populations: A Global Review

“…Older age seemed to be a protective factor against elder abuse in global Chinese populations . Those with younger age were more likely to experience elder abuse (Yan & Chan, 2012), which was supported by a report from 122 family caregivers (Yan & Kwok, 2011). Women were more susceptible to elder abuse according to a clinical study of Chinese older adults in Mainland China (Dong, Beck, & Simon, 2010;.…”

“…In Hong Kong, large number of co-residing days with older adults (Yan, 2014a;Yan & Kwok, 2011), a lack of assistance from a domestic helper (Yan & Kwok, 2011), a high level of caregiver burden (Yan, 2014a;Yan & Kwok, 2011) childhood experience of abuse, negative attitudes toward older adults, and modernity (Yan & Tang, 2003) were significantly linked to elder abuse. In Taiwan, fewer working hours of caregivers, lower education level, lack of social resources, higher working stress (Wang, Lin, Tseng, & Chang, 2009), caregiver burden, and younger age (Wang, 2005;Wang, Lin, & Lee, 2006) were identified as key factors associated with psychological elder abuse behavior.…”

“…Even when using the same instrument, the number of items used to measure elder abuse and its subtypes varied. For instance, Yan measured verbal abuse using an 8-item subscale from 2001 to 2004 (Yan & Tang, 2001, but shortened the scale to 6 items in 2011 (Yan & Kwok, 2011). There is also a discrepancy between time periods when recalling elder abuse among these studies, which included "lifetime" (Chan, Brownridge, Tiwari, Fong, & Leung, 2008;Shibusawa & Yick, 2007), "since 60 years or older" (Dong, 2014a;Dong, Chen, et al, 2014), "since 55 years old" (Lai, 2011), "in the past year" (Wu et al, 2012;Yan & Tang, 2001, "within past month" (Yan, 2014a;Yan & Kwok, 2011), or an omission of timeframe (Wang, 2006).…”

Factors associated with prolonged length of stay in older patients

“…(14,19) Caregiver stress and burden also increase the risk of institutionalisation, hospital readmission and patient abuse. (37) Stress in caregivers often arises from problems with coping with the patient's physical care or behaviour, financial difficulties, (27) emotional strain and the negative impact of caregiving on the caregiver's personal life. (38) If not addressed, caregiver strain can exert a negative impact on patients and may also lead to the development of psychiatric comorbidities among caregivers.…”

Validity and Reliability of the Persian Version of the Revised Caregiving Appraisal Scale in Iranian Family Caregivers of Older Adults with Dementia

“…For instance, the caregiver's subjective perception of the burden of care is a powerful predictor of the older adult's admission to nursing homes and the eventual termination of home care (15,16). For example, the caregiver's perception of care is a subjective burden that acts as a powerful predictor of the older adults' admission to nursing homes and the end of home care for them (17). Despite the researchers' consensus on the construct being multifaceted, studies still tend to emphasize the negative aspects of care and ignore its positives; so portraying the dynamic nature of care requires an emphasis on all the aspects it entails (8,18).…”