Murray J, Schneider J, Banerjee S, Mann A
Section of Epidemiology and General Practice, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK.
Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 1999 Aug;14(8):662-7. doi: 10.1002/(sici)1099-1166(199908)14:8<662::aid-gps993>3.0.co;2-4.
Spouses caring for a partner with dementia are subject to physical, psychological and social stresses. In view of the part played by spouse carers in preventing admission to institutional care, a fuller understanding of the subjective experience of caring is an important area of enquiry. Qualitative analysis of their accounts of the difficulties and rewards in looking after their partners may indicate strategies to support them and to alleviate the stresses that they experience.
Twenty co-resident spouses of people with NINCDS-ADRDA probable dementia of the Alzheimer's type, who had been diagnosed as such within the past 12-36 months, were recruited from service contacts in each of 14 out of the 15 countries of the EU. All completed a semi-structured interview that included open-ended questions about the experience of caring.
Overall, the most commonly expressed difficulties reflected: loss of companionship through diminished quality of communication; loss of reciprocity as carers experienced their partners' growing dependency; and deterioration in their partners' social behaviour. Satisfaction from caring stemmed from: a feeling of job satisfaction; continued reciprocity and mutual affection; companionship; and the fulfillment of a sense of duty.
Spouse carers in the 14 countries described the difficulties and rewards of caring in similar terms. This suggests commonality of experience, in spite of diversity in informal and statutory provision of care for older people between different countries.
照顾患有痴呆症伴侣的配偶会面临身体、心理和社会压力。鉴于配偶照顾者在防止患者入住机构护理方面所起的作用，更全面地了解照顾的主观体验是一个重要的研究领域。对他们照顾伴侣时的困难和收获的描述进行定性分析，可能会得出支持他们并减轻他们所经历压力的策略。
从欧盟15个国家中14个国家的服务联系人处招募了20名与患有NINCDS - ADRDA可能为阿尔茨海默病型痴呆症的患者共同居住的配偶，这些患者在过去12 - 36个月内被诊断为此病。所有人都完成了一次半结构化访谈，其中包括关于照顾经历的开放式问题。
总体而言，最常表达的困难反映在：因沟通质量下降而失去陪伴；由于照顾者经历伴侣日益增加的依赖而失去互惠；以及伴侣社交行为的恶化。照顾带来的满足感源于：工作满意度；持续的互惠和相互关爱；陪伴；以及责任感的实现。
14个国家的配偶照顾者对照顾的困难和收获的描述方式相似。这表明尽管不同国家在为老年人提供非正式和法定护理方面存在差异，但他们的经历具有共性。
