Caregiving: The Balancing Act for Todays Workforce Debra Lerner, MS, - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Caregiving: The Balancing Act for Today’s Workforce

Debra Lerner, MS, PhD, Director, Program on Health, Work and Productivity Professor of Medicine and Psychiatry, Tufts University School of Medicine and Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences

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What Have We Learned About Caregivers Who Are Also Employed?

• 2009 Workplace Survey of Employees in a Business

Services Company

• 2015 Population-Based Survey of Caregivers of Persons

with Schizophrenia and/or Schizoaffective Disorder

Who is An Informal Caregiver? You are a caregiver, if all of the following statements are true:

• At anytime in the past year you provided unpaid help, or

arranged for help, to a relative or friend with an illness or disability that left them unable to do some things for themselves, or who needed assistance because they were simply getting older.

• The kind of help involved assistance with household

chores, finances, personal or medical needs.

• The person who needed help lived in his or her own

home, in your home or another caregiver’s home or in another place such as a nursing home.

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Women 62% Men 38%

Current Caregivers' Gender

Who is Providing Care?

Current Caregivers = 18.3% Past Caregivers = 10.2%

<30 10% 30-40 18% 40-50 34% 50-60 32% 60+ 6%

Current Caregivers' Age

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Workplace Survey (4,128 Responded, 755 Current Caregivers)

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Parent 75% Other relative 33% Spouse/ domestic partner 36% Non-relative 25% Child under 18 years old 49%

Workplace Survey (755 Current Caregivers)

Who is Receiving Care?

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Which Employees are Vulnerable to Spillover Effects?

Caregiver Work Limitations Questionnaire (WLQ) Scores by Caregiver Age (755 Current Caregivers)

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% Time Management Physical Tasks Mental-Interpersonal Tasks Output Tasks Time With Limitations Work Limitations Due to Caregiving Past 4 Weeks <30 (n=73) 30-40 (n=130) 41-50 (n=262) 51-60 (n=235) >60 (n=44) Age group

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Which Employees are Vulnerable to Spillover Effects?

Caregiver WLQ Scores by Caregiver Occupational Category (755 Current Caregivers)

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%

Time Management Physical Tasks Mental-Interpersonal Tasks Output Tasks Work Limitations Due to Caregiving Past 4 Weeks Hourly (n=481) Salaried (n=274)

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Time With Limitations

Which Employees are Vulnerable to Spillover Effects?

Caregiver WLQ Scores by Number of Care Recipients (755 Current Caregivers)

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% Time Management Physical Tasks Mental-Interpersonal Tasks Output Tasks Time With Limitations Work Limitations Due to Caregiving Past 4 Weeks Occasional (n=130) 1 Person (n=319) 2 People (n=165) 3 People (n=71) ≥ 4 People (n=70)

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No, help wanted but can't get it 19% Yes, full-time help 4% Yes, part-time help 11% No, help not wanted 66%

Do Caregivers Prefer to Hire Someone to Assist? (755 Current Caregivers)

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Not sure 17% Yes 4% No 79%

Do Caregivers Plan to Take a Leave of Absence? (755 Current Caregivers)

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What Have We Learned About Caregivers Who Are Also Employed?

• 2009 Workplace Survey of Employees in a Business

Services Company

• 2015 Population-Based Survey of Caregivers of Persons

with Schizophrenia and/or Schizoaffective Disorder

• Schizophrenia and Schizoaffective Disorders are Chronic,

Frequently Disabling Chronic Illnesses

• Research Indicates that Caregivers Have a Substantial Influence
• n the Outcomes of Persons Receiving Care

Caregivers of Persons with Serious Mental Illness Survey (1,142 Responding)

Full-time 42% Part-time 21% Stopped working past 2 years (not retired) 5.8% Unemployed <2 years (not retired) 28% Retired 4%

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How Many Caregivers Were Employed?

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Caregivers of Persons with Serious Mental Illness Survey (710 Employed Caregivers)

Parent 54% Sibling 15% Spouse/ partner 13% Child 9% Other relative 4% Other non- relative 5%

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Who Was Receiving the Care?

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Caregivers of Persons with Serious Mental Illness Survey (710 Employed Caregivers)

Caregivers' home 42% Own home 23% Other home 9% Facility 19% Other 7%

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Where Did Caregivers and Persons Receiving Care Reside?

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Spillover into the Workplace: Caregiver WLQ Scores for Caregivers of Persons with Serious Mental Illness Survey (710 Employed Caregivers)

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%

Time Management Physical Tasks Mental-Interpersonal Tasks Output Tasks

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Work Limitations Due to Caregiving Past 4 Weeks Time With Limitations

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What is Contributing to Psychological Distress among Caregivers? Caregivers of Persons with Serious Mental Illness Survey (1,142 Responding)

Individual Characteristics

• Employment status

Individual Characteristics

• Younger C
• Younger CR
• Diagnosed past 5 years
• Health of C

Negative Cognitive Appraisals

• Financial burden
• Emotionally unrewarding

Caregiver Role Demands

• Primary C
• Provides most care
• Vigilant about med adherence
• Hospitalized CR
• High ADL/IADL Assistance
• High Monitoring Assistance

Caregiver Distress

Social Support Limited Availability–

• Of a substitute C when

needed

• Caregiving guidance &

advice

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Key Takeaways

• Many employees are caregivers and they are a diverse group, varying in

age, gender and occupation and often share a home with the persons who receive care

• The persons receiving care are also diverse-some are relatively young

and some are relatively old

• Despite substantial psychological distress and spillover into the

workplace, many caregivers prefer to do the caregiving themselves and have no plans to take time off

• Employers may need to consider these factors to develop effective

approaches to supporting our multi-generational workforce and reducing the impact of caregiving on the workplace

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