| dc.description.abstract | This thesis examines the social conditions and factors that influenced
a group of women caregivers to accept or decline support in the provision
of care to terminally-ill family members or relatives. I discuss the long-term
impact the provision of such care may have on women caregivers' own
health, and the implications this may have for more appropriate allocation
of health care resources in the future. I discuss social expectations
regarding the gender of caregiving, and the extent to which this group of
women in Northwestern Ontario were aware of, and had access to formal
and informal support, as well as the degree to which the support available
was seen to be accessible and beneficial.
This research is based on both primary and secondary data collection.
Primary data sources include; 1) an analysis of selective questions from a
regional survey on consumer perceptions of palliative care in Northwestern
Ontario; 2) tape-recorded interviews from two focus groups in Thunder
Bay deriving from the consumer survey; and 3) one focus group with
palliative care volunteers in the city of Thunder Bay. Secondary data
sources include social science literature on gender and caregiving and a
review of recent policy analyses of health care restructuring in Canada.
Similar to other studies, this research confirms gendered expectations
of caregiving in chronic and long-term care situations. Assumptions and
expectations held by society, family members, and women themselves
reinforce the idea of women’s responsibility as primary caregivers and tend
to ignore the consequences this may hold for women’s own health and
family lives. In addition, this thesis furthers our understanding of the
gendered dimension of caregiving by identifying several key factors that
play a role in affecting women’s decision-making to accept or decline
supportive care. I argue that concerns to preserve the dignity of
terminally-ill family members in institutional settings, and the desire to
ensure that the patient receives quality care despite staffing shortages and
limited services related to recent cutbacks in the health care system are
significant influences in women’s decision-making and may cause them to
ignore the impact this caregiving has on their own health.
Based on the statements made by caregivers in this research, I argue
that additional formal support needs to be made available and accessible
to informal caregivers. Emotional and practical support would assist both
the terminally-ill and their family members. Of equal importance are
specific modifications to the implementation of health-care delivery to
those in long-term chronic care and short-term palliative care. Presently,
it is assumed that female family members are best suited to the role of
primary caregivers for ill spouses, parents and relatives. Further research
needs to be undertaken to examine the health consequences of this
provision of care on women caregivers and to explore the context in which
care is being provided. Furthermore, family caregivers have insights about
patient needs that health care professionals may find instructive in contributing to the quality of life of terminally-ill patients and family
caregivers. Recognition of this may alleviate women’s sense of sole
responsibility for the provision of quality care to their family members. | |
