ICCER Webinar

Family caregivers (FCGs) are the backbone of the health system. They provide over 80% of the care for people with dementia, chronic illnesses, and impairments. Despite evidence of their contributions and consequences of caregiving, support for FCGs has not been a health system priority. One of the most challenging times for FCGs is the transition to higher levels of care (i.e. Supportive Living and Long-Term Care). While the notion is that placement relieves the FCG of care tasks and reduces burden of care, many FCGs continue to spend similar amounts of time visiting, monitoring care, and providing support to the resident. FCG burden and distress remains as high after placement as it was when they cared at home. Person-centred care has been shown to improve the satisfaction with care, quality of life, and relationships with health providers. Caregiver-centred care can give families peace of mind at a time when they can feel lost, alone, or even burdened. Health providers benefit from improved morale and warmer relationships with family caregivers. Education to prepare health providers to effectively identify, engage, assess, and support FCGs throughout the care trajectory is an innovative approach in addressing the inconsistent system of supports for FCGs. In this webinar we will introduce the Carers Support Needs Assessment Tool and approach.