Tanielian Terri, Ramchand Rajeev, Fisher Michael P, Sims Carra S, Harris Racine S, Harrell Margaret C
Rand Health Q. 2013 Mar 1;3(1):3. eCollection 2013 Spring.
Military caregivers are an essential part of our nation's ability to care for returning wounded warriors. Far too often, their own needs are neglected. The RAND Corporation and the Elizabeth Dole Foundation collaborated on a first, exploratory phase of a larger research effort regarding this demographic and its needs. The research explores what is known about the number and characteristics of military caregivers, describes the roles and functions they perform, and highlights the effect of caregiving on their own well-being. Most existing literature on family caregivers is heavily focused on an older population caring for persons with chronic conditions or dementia. By comparison, research on military caregivers is scant, and there are notable differences that make this population unique: Military caregivers are spouses with young children, parents with full- and part-time jobs, and sometimes even young children helping shoulder some of the burden. Government services available to this population are in their infancy; community service organizations offer diverse services but they are generally uncoordinated. This article lays the groundwork to inform policy and program development relative to the unique needs of military caregivers.
军事护理人员是我国照顾返乡受伤战士能力的重要组成部分。但他们自身的需求却常常被忽视。兰德公司和伊丽莎白·多尔基金会就这一人群及其需求开展了一项规模更大的研究项目的首个探索阶段。该研究探讨了有关军事护理人员数量和特征的已知情况，描述了他们所履行的角色和职能，并强调了护理工作对他们自身幸福的影响。大多数现有的关于家庭护理人员的文献都主要聚焦于照顾慢性病患者或痴呆症患者的老年人群体。相比之下，关于军事护理人员的研究很少，而且存在显著差异，使得这一群体具有独特性：军事护理人员中有带着年幼子女的配偶、有全职和兼职工作的父母，甚至有时还有帮忙分担部分负担的年幼子女。为这一群体提供的政府服务尚处于起步阶段；社区服务组织提供各种服务，但通常缺乏协调。本文为制定针对军事护理人员独特需求的政策和项目奠定了基础。
