Who cares? Provision of Care and Assistance Among Older Persons in the Philippines

Abstract

This study aims to examine the provision of assistance among older persons in the Philippines who experience difficulty with activities of daily living (ADLs) or instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs). Method: Data for this research are drawn from the 2007 Philippine Study on Aging (PSOA). Cross-tabulations and regression analyses are used to identify who provides assistance to older Filipinos. Results: The study shows that the Filipino family, particularly spouse and daughters, plays an important role in providing assistance to older Filipinos who need help in carrying out functional activities. This provision of caregiving, however, follows a gendered pattern. Specifically, the spouse provides assistance to older men, whereas daughters provide assistance to older women. Grandchildren and noncoresident family members, to some extent, are also active in providing care to older Filipinos. Discussion: The Filipino family remains faithful to its filial duty toward older persons, but who provides care and the way it is provided are likely to change due to the demographic changes and values shifts that have swept the country.

A phenomenological–hermeneutic study exploring caring responsibility for a chronically ill, older parent with frailty

“…This is different from studies from other parts of the world, where adult children may do whatever necessary including providing financial support (Abalos, Yasuhiko Saito, Cruz, & G.T. & Booth, H., 2018; Aires et al, 2017; Mendez‐Luck, Kennedy, & Wallace, 2008). However, this mutual agreement is consistent with findings of prior studies by Haberkern and Szydlik (2010) and Suanet, Groenou, and Tilburg (2012), showing that most of the population in Western European countries favours government responsibility in this respect, especially in the Netherlands and the Scandinavian countries.…”

Long-Term Care for Older Adults in ASEAN Plus Three: The Roles of Family, Community, and the State in Addressing Unmet Eldercare Needs

“…Along the same line of enquiry on the role of family in caregiving, Abalos, Saito, Cruz, and Booth (2018) examine who provide assistance to older adults in the Philippines who have functional limitations and are in need of assistance based on data from the 2007 Philippine Study on Aging. Results show that, similar to patterns in Thailand, family, particularly spouses and daughters, plays the most important role in providing care.…”

The Well-Being of Older Adults in the Philippines: Application of the Years of Good Life

“…This event is a prevalent measure in many surveys. The threshold to define having a functional limitation is experiencing difficulty performing at least one of the enumerated activities (Abalos et al, 2018;Vicerra, 2022b). The final measure test is the Global Activity Limitation Instrument (GALI), which involves only one question on whether the respondent felt limited to performing activities in the previous six months due to a health problem (Jagger et al, 2010).…”