Who are caregivers and who are the ones they care for? The answer may surprise you.
When we are put in the position of taking care of our elderly loved ones, we may feel alone. Here are the statistics about caregivers:
Demographic Characteristics of Family Caregivers
Caregiver Gender: 61 percent female; 39 percent male
Caregiver Age: 54 percent of family caregivers are age 50 or older (average age is 49.4 years old)
Caregiver Race/Ethnicity: 61 percent non-Hispanic white; 17 percent Latinx/Hispanic; 14 percent non-Hispanic African American or black; 5 percent Asian/Pacific Islander; 3 percent other race/ethnicity, including multiracial
Caregiver Marital Status: 54 percent married; 21 percent single, never married; 8 percent divorced; 7 percent living with a partner; 4 percent widowed
Caregiver Employment Status: 61 percent employed; 39 percent not employed
Caregiver Household Income: 36 percent have a net income less than $50,000; 64 percent have a net income of $50,000 or more (average household income is $67,500)
Demographic Characteristics of Care Recipients
Number of Care Recipients: 76 percent care for one adult; 24 percent care for two or more adults
Care Recipient Gender: 61 percent female; 39 percent male
Care Recipient Age: 46 percent of care recipients are age 75 and older (average age is 68.9 years old)
Care Recipient Relation to Caregiver: 89 percent of care recipients are related to their caregivers by blood or marriage
Care Recipient Relationship to Caregiver: 42 percent parent; 12 percent spouse/partner; 8 percent parent-in-law; 8 percent grandparent/grandparent-in-law; 7 percent sibling/sibling-in-law
Care Recipient Living Situation: 26 percent of care recipients live alone
Care Recipient Residence: 43 percent of care recipients live in their own home; 40 percent of care recipients live in their caregiver’s household; 11 percent live in senior housing communities
Care Recipient’s Main Reason for Needing Care: 16 percent “old age”; 12 percent mobility issues; 11 percent Alzheimer’s disease/dementia; 6 percent cancer; 6 percent surgery/wound care; 5 percent mental/emotional illness; 5 percent stroke; 4 percent diabetes; 4 percent feeble/falling; 3 percent blindness/vision loss.
People have always taken care of their elderly relatives, but only in recent years have so many of the elderly relatives in so many families lived to the point where it is almost a sure thing that home care will be needed.
There are many reasons for this, not the least of which it is cost prohibitive to put elders into extended care, living facilities.
We also know that the elders, unless they are severely incapacitated would much rather be with the people that love them.
This has created a large cadre of caretakers, the likes of which this country has never seen.
It is all new territory, and if you are taking care of a loved one for the first time, you may not know where to turn.
Celeste Thomas has the experience, and the knowledge to help you help your loved one. She has been where you are right now, and the skills that she learned through taking care of her father will be invaluable to you.
Book that free consultation, and make that call. You and your loved one deserve the help that she can provide.
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