Throughout my career with older adults, I have witnessed incredible caregivers of all ages and backgrounds providing care during challenging times. During caregiver support groups I have heard both the joys and pains of caregiving. Caregiving can include a rollercoaster of emotions with the backdrop of changing environments and needs that can last years. In the United States and globally, women represent 81% of caregivers. This work is often unpaid leading to loss of wages and negative emotional and physical impacts (Jankowski, 2011, Samuels, 2023)..

In my work with the VA, I provided social work services for not only the individuals in the long-term care, but their caregivers. During caregiver support groups, group members vulnerably shared both their practical suggestions to one another but also their feelings of overwhelm mixed with moments of hope. At the end of the internship, we gathered for a movie screening of PBS’s new documentary, Caregiving.

I highly recommend watching this for anyone interested in the topic. It can be watched here:

https://www.pbs.org/show/caregiving/

Respite, or a formalized break from caregiving, is underutilized and inaccessible for many caregivers in the United States. Research demonstrates the benefit of respite in improving physical and psychological health of caregivers as well as reducing hospitalizations (AARP study). Additionally about 38% of caregivers would like respite services yet only 14% use respite (AARP, 2020).

During my internship at the VA, I assisted in research related to the VA respite program. I read research about policies that support or limit respite, met with families and individuals interested in respite, and learned the respite stay/application process from inquiry to discharge including Central Screening meetings. I analyzed existing data to provide recommendations to grow and improve the program by creating a respite data collection report. I advocated for additional resources including more respite beds. This research report is not included due to sensitive internal information. As I spoke to families utilizing the respite program at the VA, I heard families repeat the refrains, “I wish I knew about this sooner,” or “this is a lifesaver for us.” The more I researched respite I realized that like many social programs in the U.S., it is a patchwork of services that is confusing to navigate. As a result, I created a resource chart for avenues for accessing respite in the U.S. and have provided it to colleagues. Policy reform is needed to provide this needed support for caregivers with visible and accessible access points.

Download Respite chart

Competency Note: In the projects with caregivers and respite I demonstrated the following growing competencies and skills:

4: Engage in Practice-Informed Research and Research-Informed Practice

5: Engage in Policy Practice

6: Engage with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations and Communities

7: Assess Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations and Communities

8: Intervene with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations and Communities

9: Evaluate Practice with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations and Communities