Jacinta C. Ene, Agha A. Agha, Samuel O. Ebimgbo, Chinyere E. Onalu, Paulinus S. Okah, Prince C. Ekoh
{"title":"Paid Informal Caregivers’ Management of Older Adults’ Health Demands: Implication for Social Work Professionals in Contemporary Nigerian Society","authors":"Jacinta C. Ene, Agha A. Agha, Samuel O. Ebimgbo, Chinyere E. Onalu, Paulinus S. Okah, Prince C. Ekoh","doi":"10.1007/s12126-024-09564-x","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Oftentimes, older adults experience a decline in health as they age. In Nigeria and other African countries, caregiving for older adults is usually a filial responsibility. With the decline in health and increasing demand for care, family members often require the assistance of paid informal caregivers. These are unskilled workers, extended relations and personal care attendants who shoulder the responsibility of providing services to older adults whose family members are not able to provide regular caregiving. This study explored paid informal caregivers’ management of older adults’ health demands and its implication for social work professionals in contemporary Nigerian society. The study employed a qualitative research method. Focus Group discussions (FGDs) were utilized to elicit data from 48 participants residing in Enugu State, Nigeria. Data was coded into parent and child notes. An inductive coding approach was adopted to provide meaning to the coded data as we studied the transcripts. Codes with similar characteristics were grouped thematically. We found that various challenges experienced by paid informal caregivers in the management of older adults’ health demands were gender preference, age, health status of older adults and low financial reward. The reward received is not commensurate with the provided services and so they experience burden, stress and unsatisfied life. It was also found that paid informal caregivers adopt inadequate coping strategies and have no knowledge of health apparatus utilized in care management, owing to lagging care support. It is essential to revitalize the traditional community-based care system since care for older adults is gradually eroding to paid informal caregivers in contemporary Nigerian society. This is a clear indication that care for older adults is threatened. There is a need for social work professionals to work in collaboration with families and caregivers in various community settings. Overall, adequate health policy consideration should be given to all older adults in Nigeria.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":1,"journal":{"name":"Accounts of Chemical Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":16.4000,"publicationDate":"2024-05-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Accounts of Chemical Research","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12126-024-09564-x","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"CHEMISTRY, MULTIDISCIPLINARY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Oftentimes, older adults experience a decline in health as they age. In Nigeria and other African countries, caregiving for older adults is usually a filial responsibility. With the decline in health and increasing demand for care, family members often require the assistance of paid informal caregivers. These are unskilled workers, extended relations and personal care attendants who shoulder the responsibility of providing services to older adults whose family members are not able to provide regular caregiving. This study explored paid informal caregivers’ management of older adults’ health demands and its implication for social work professionals in contemporary Nigerian society. The study employed a qualitative research method. Focus Group discussions (FGDs) were utilized to elicit data from 48 participants residing in Enugu State, Nigeria. Data was coded into parent and child notes. An inductive coding approach was adopted to provide meaning to the coded data as we studied the transcripts. Codes with similar characteristics were grouped thematically. We found that various challenges experienced by paid informal caregivers in the management of older adults’ health demands were gender preference, age, health status of older adults and low financial reward. The reward received is not commensurate with the provided services and so they experience burden, stress and unsatisfied life. It was also found that paid informal caregivers adopt inadequate coping strategies and have no knowledge of health apparatus utilized in care management, owing to lagging care support. It is essential to revitalize the traditional community-based care system since care for older adults is gradually eroding to paid informal caregivers in contemporary Nigerian society. This is a clear indication that care for older adults is threatened. There is a need for social work professionals to work in collaboration with families and caregivers in various community settings. Overall, adequate health policy consideration should be given to all older adults in Nigeria.
期刊介绍:
Accounts of Chemical Research presents short, concise and critical articles offering easy-to-read overviews of basic research and applications in all areas of chemistry and biochemistry. These short reviews focus on research from the author’s own laboratory and are designed to teach the reader about a research project. In addition, Accounts of Chemical Research publishes commentaries that give an informed opinion on a current research problem. Special Issues online are devoted to a single topic of unusual activity and significance.
Accounts of Chemical Research replaces the traditional article abstract with an article "Conspectus." These entries synopsize the research affording the reader a closer look at the content and significance of an article. Through this provision of a more detailed description of the article contents, the Conspectus enhances the article's discoverability by search engines and the exposure for the research.