Elderly caregiver of elderly in the hospital context

Abstract

Aim: to characterize the profile of elderly caregivers in the hospital context. Methods: This is a crosssectional study, carried out in three reference hospitals in the state of Ceará, Brazil, in 2019. The sample consisted of 16 elderly caregivers. A semi-structured interview script was used and, for data analysis, descriptive statistics, and cross tables. Results: The age of participants ranged from 60 to 68 years and there was a higher frequency of females (81%), Catholic religion (56.3%), living in a stable relationship (31%). As a bond, the presence of the child as a caregiver predominated (31.3%). The length of hospital stays accompanying the elderly was 24 hours, in 62% of cases; 50% of the hospitalized elderly had a degree of dependence III. The main reason that led them to take care of the elderly was the lack of another person to take over the function (37.5%). Conclusions: The main characteristics of the elderly surveyed in different contexts are young elderly, female, and family. Thus, it is evident that family ties are predominant in the care of the hospitalized elderly. In this way, the importance of strengthening the support networks for both the hospitalized elderly person and the caregiver of this elderly person is highlighted, since this “new” scenario imposes several challenges in the daily life of the caregiver.