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Articles: Jan R. Oyebode Carers as partners in mental health services for older people Adv Psychiatr Treat 2005; 11: 297-304 [Abstract] [Full text] [PDF]

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Caring for Carers - A little could do a lot.

Geraldine D'Souza   (24 July 2005)

Caring for Carers - A little could do a lot. 24 July 2005
Geraldine D'Souza, Staff grade Doctor in Old age Psychiatry St. Michael's Hospital,St.Miachaels road,Warwick - CV34 6AJ Send letter to journal: Re: Caring for Carers - A little could do a lot. gerry_s_1977{at}yahoo.co.in Geraldine D'Souza	I read with interest the article by Jan.R.Oyebode on the importance and various means of engaging carers as partners in providing the most effective and efficient care for people with dementia. It is commendable that the author has brought together all the current issues relating to carers of the elderly in this succinct article. I would like to take this opportunity to add my own thoughts on this highly relevant topic. The 1995 Carers Act marked the gradual shift in the way mental health professionals perceive carers. The U.K’s 6 million carers save the government about £55 billion a year in potential care costs (Carers UK,2002). This in itself presents a compelling reason to support carers making them central to not only the management process, but also in the planning and development of a service; education and research projects. There has been growing evidence to suggest the effectiveness of involving carers in various aspects of service provision, however such evidence remains relatively sparse. This may be by far the most important hurdle in increasing the involvement of carers. Nevertheless I would like to draw attention to the other factors that can hinder working in partnership with carers that have not been mentioned in the article. Lack of funding, scepticism and lack of interest among professionals, negative attitudes about the feasibility of such approaches and finally due to a deficiency in trained staff and supervision. It is important that rather than waiting for more robust evidence every team needs to make the effort to bring change and individuality however small to improve practice. I am in the midst of conducting a survey on how a diagnosis of dementia affects carers and the various interventions that have been beneficial either through their own experience or that provided by the local authorities. The intention behind this survey is not only to make carers feel understood and learn from their experiences, but also to help streamline the management plan and use the services more effectively, as there is always a dearth of resources! In order to effect change, the role of carers as 'Partners in Care' needs to be taken seriously to influence future service provision. Building on the existing evidence from research into carer involvement would encourage this, but implementing the curently available evidence into local care programmes is more important. References : Department of Health (2001).National service framework for older people. Carers UK (2002) Adding Value: Carers as Drivers of Social Change. London: Carers UK Simpson, E.L., House, A.O.& Barkham, M. (2002) A guide to involving Users, Ex-users and Carers in Mental health Service Planning, Delivery or Research: A Health Technology Approach. Leeds,UK:Academic Unit of Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences,University of Leeds. Jan R.Oyebode.(2005) Carers as partners in the mental health services for older people.Advances in Psychiatric treatment vol.11, 297-304 Declaration of interest- None.