The American health care system is changing. As a result of fewer hospitalizations and shorter stays, and a market-based approach to health care financing, family caregivers confront increasing responsibilities, burdens, and challenges. If the care recipient is unable to make decisions or participate in his or her own care, family caregivers are the most likely surrogates. Agencies of the health care system often have different policies and practices and are poorly coordinated.
Family caregivers have to cope with many confusing and frustrating inconsistencies.
While family members have always been important providers of direct care and emotional support for their ill relatives, their role is now even more critical. High-technology care has moved from hospitals to homes. More women, the traditional caregivers, are in the labor force, and less available to provide full-time care. An aging population requires more care, especially with progressive neurological diseases. Most families feel an obligation to help an ill relative, and those who assume the demanding role of family caregiver typically do so because of their close attachment to the person or because of a combination of practical, emotional, and social reasons.