[Compatibility of caring in dementia, family and employment].

BACKGROUND

Informal caregivers of people with dementia (PWD) are a vulnerable group, which is not only confronted with potential burdens due to caring but also with the demands of the family and working life. The state of national studies on experiencing the tensions between care, family and work is insufficient.

OBJECTIVE

This qualitative study is a reconstructive analysis of the compatibility between caregiving with the areas of family and working life, in which the primary and secondary caregivers of the PWD were taken into account.

METHODS

We conducted 14 narrative interviews with family caregivers of PWD. The analysis was based on Nohl's documentary method and led to the formation of different types.

RESULTS

In caring families of PWD, subjective relationship quality and task distribution are mutually dependent and this affects the family's care experiences. Stable relationships and fairly distributed tasks can facilitate caregiving, whereas conflict-ridden relationships and unfairly distributed or undivided tasks increase the family's care burden. Employed caregivers perceive the areas of life, caregiving and work as separate, conflicting or mutually supportive.

CONCLUSION

The burden of informal caregiving for PWD leads to impairments in family and working life, which can have negative consequences for the health of the family caregivers; however, family and work can also reduce the burden if caregivers are supported by, for example therapeutic services, to experience positive care experiences, such as strengthened family relationships and functionality and if employed caregivers experience work as a strengthening area of life.