Three out of four caregivers of people with Alzheimer's are women, according to data extracted from the support and training program for caregivers carried out by the Pasqual Maragall Foundation throughout 2022. Aspects such as age and deep-rooted cultural factors are the main reasons why, in the vast majority of cases, caring for a family member with Alzheimer's remains a responsibility with an eminently female profile.
This data highlights the involvement of women as caregivers and, on the occasion of International Women's Day, which is celebrated today, March 8, the Pasqual Maragall Foundation wants to highlight this essential task that is not sufficiently recognized in our society.
Women, the epicenter of care
In more than 80% of Alzheimer's cases, care falls on the family, with the main caregiver dedicating an average of 15 hours a day, seven days a week. In our context, caring for a dependent person is mostly done within the family and, therefore, requires sacrifice and renunciation, in most cases, by women, who have to reduce their working hours or even abandon their professional career. In 2020, 93.6% of the people who were forced to reduce their working hours to care for a family member with Alzheimer's were women, according to data from the National Institute of Statistics (INE).
This involvement, combined with a lack of knowledge about many aspects related to the disease and the emotional ties with the affected person, often causes the caregiver to suffer physical and psychological problems derived from their role, such as stress, anxiety, depression or frustration.
With the aim of offering a training and support resource to caregivers compatible with care tasks, during 2022 the Pasqual Maragall Foundation implemented the online program “Learn to care and take care of yourself” in which 115 caregivers participated. This program provides relevant information on the evolution of the disease and practical strategies to improve the quality of life of the person being cared for. Keys are also offered to manage the emotions linked to the task of caring for a family member with Alzheimer's.
More than 80% of the people who participated in the online program “Learn to care and take care of yourself” during 2022 were women, and mostly between the ages of 45 and 66. “Caring involves a very high cost for women. We are not only talking about an economic cost, but also a personal, social, psychological and work-related cost. And to this we must add that the task of caring does not receive the recognition it deserves at a social or institutional level,” explains Elena de Andrés, psychologist and therapeutic coordinator of the Pasqual Maragall Foundation.
In addition to the online program “Learn to care for others and take care of yourself,” the Pasqual Maragall Foundation also offers face-to-face therapeutic groups at its headquarters in Barcelona for those caregivers who need more intensive support. “The responsibility of care involves great psychological pressure. In this sense, we have found that group therapy improves the well-being of caregivers. In addition, therapeutic groups allow us to influence these vital aspects that cannot be treated individually, such as breaking social isolation and learning from other people who are in the same situation,” explains Elena de Andrés.
Group support programs for caregivers
The group programs of the Pasqual Maragall Foundation address highly relevant topics, such as the evolution of the disease, the approach to symptoms, communication with the affected person and available community resources, among others. Likewise, these spaces also provide specific guidelines and strategies to attend to the well-being of the person in charge of caring for their family member with Alzheimer's.
He Online emotional support and training program for caregivers of family members with Alzheimer's, “Learn to care and take care of yourself”, is aimed at supporting caregivers, offering them a training resource and emotional support. It is a psychoeducational program based on a practical perspective and adapted to the needs generated on a day-to-day basis when caring for a loved one with Alzheimer's. It is developed in groups of 10 people during 8 sessions of 60 minutes each and is held weekly.
Modifiable factors are those that concern the control of cardiovascular health and the promotion of healthy lifestyle habits, among which the most notable are cognitive and social activity, adequate nutrition, physical activity and ensuring good quality sleep. Therapeutic groups for family caregivers of people with Alzheimer's They are based on group psychological therapy, which the Pasqual Maragall Foundation launched in 2021 and has demonstrated its benefits in different aspects related to their well-being. The participants, in addition to acquiring knowledge about the disease and tools to better cope with the process of caring, share their experiences, learn to manage their own emotions and practice relaxation techniques. This therapy is developed in groups of 10 people during 14 sessions of 90 minutes each, and also on a weekly basis.
To date, more than 1,500 caregivers have participated in the 151 group programs promoted by our foundation.
More information on group care programs for caregivers at: https://fpmaragall.org/cuidando-al-cuidador/
