zur Kammer, K., Schütz, J., Hudelmayer, A., Hunsicker, C. & Bethmann, A. (2024)
In the context of the rapid digital transformation and its impact on the quality of life of older people, the study of digital skills in this age group is becoming increasingly important. The Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) is a longitudinal study with the aim of gaining comprehensive insights into the life situation of older people over the age of 50 in numerous European countries. There is a tension in questionnaire development between the desire for panel stability, which ensures the consistency of questions over time, and the rapid pace of technological development. This requires continuous adaptation of survey instruments to ensure that they are relevant and up to date, without compromising the comparability of the data collected. One method for testing and revising questionnaires is the qualitative pretest interview (QPI). The aim of the project was to further develop the IT module of SHARE, which included an item on the self-assessment of older people's computer skills. To this end, survey specialists were trained in the use of the QPI and interviews were conducted with 17 people aged between 50 and 87. It was found that although most of the interviewees had hardly any difficulties understanding the computer skills item at first glance, they used highly individualised frames of reference for their self-assessment. As a result, the comparability of responses to quantitative surveys is limited. Approaches are formulated as to how this problem can be tackled in the further development of the item.
Specially designed apps for informal carers promise support and relief in various areas of everyday caregiving, but they are hardly widespread in practice. The aim of this review is to provide a comprehensive insight into the current market of German-language apps for digital support for family carers. After conducting a systematic, criteria-based research 36 apps for family caregivers were included. The analysis of the included apps shows that the care apps mainly offer functions in the areas of information, communication, organization and coordination, documentation and service purchases. Based on this, the apps could be characterized according to their range of functions. The extent to which the identified care apps undergo testing or certification procedures or have seals of approval was also examined. The research also analyzes the general availability and accessibility of care apps and their offer distribution in order to provide a comprehensive insight into the German-speaking market for digital support for family carers.
Introduction:
The majority of people in need of care live in their own homes and are cared for by family members. This article looks at the constellations between people in need of care and informal caregivers. It shows how many caregivers a person in need of care has and how the amount of time spent caring is distributed among the caregivers. Various characteristics of people in need of care with and without caregivers are presented.
Methodology
Data from the initial long-term care assessments of the Bavarian Medical Service (Medizinischer Dienst Bayern) from 2019 are analysed. The data set comprises N = 126,876 initial care needs assessments; n = 122,501 people over the age of 50 are considered for the analyses. The descriptive analysis is carried out using Stata (version 18).
Results:
People who apply for benefits from care insurance most frequently have one (49.0 %, n = 60,024) or two (22.3 %, n = 27,358) caregivers. 21.0 % (n = 25,723) of the persons do not have a caregiver. For the main caregiver, the average duration of support is approx. 29 hours per week. In terms of gender and age, there is hardly any difference between applicants with and without caregiver(s), but there is a difference in terms of living situation: people with caregiver(s) live predominantly in outpatient living situations with other people (57.7 %, n = 55,880). At just under 49 %, people without a caregiver are most likely to live alone in outpatient living situations. People with caregiver(s) most frequently have care level 2 (37.1 %, n = 35,942), people without caregiver most frequently have no care level (27.9 %, n = 7,178). There are differences in care constellations between large cities and smaller towns.
Conclusion:
Support from caregivers and classification into care levels are linked, which is relevant for the development of targeted support measures. More attention should be paid to the needs of people in need of care who live alone in order to improve their care situation. There is also a need for regional, innovative care concepts that e. g. support the formation of care networks with informal and formal helpers.
Introduction:
For family carers, the start of caring for a loved one is a key moment in the caring process that shapes the subsequent course of care and the use of support services. Self-identification as a carer is seen as crucial in this process. Nevertheless, research gaps have been identified in this area. This working paper addresses this desideratum and examines how family carers experience the beginning of caregiving and the process of self-identification.
Methodology
To investigate the research questions, 34 qualitative interviews based on guidelines are being conducted as part of the Digital Applications for Care Provision (DiVa) research project and then analysed in detail. The evaluation is based on Kuckartz’ content-structuring qualitative content analysis (2018), differentiating between participants who retrospectively perceive the start of care as gradual or sudden.
Results:
The results show differences in the perception of the start of care, the activities carried out and the use of support between the groups of gradual and sudden caregivers. In some cases, the former do not identify themselves as family caregivers until years later, while in others they tend to take on domestic tasks at the beginning and rarely seek professional support. In contrast, relatives who suddenly become caregivers feel overwhelmed by the number and speed of demands placed on them. They are more likely to seek professional help with their care and rely on their private network for support in this exceptional situation. What both groups have in common is a personal approach to the situation and the desire to always have a contact person available, even for minor concerns.
Conclusion:
Implications for practice, for further investigation and survey research can be drawn from the results.
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