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Elderly Care

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The form of elder care provided varies greatly among countries and is changing rapidly. Even within the same country, regional differences exist with respect to the care for the elderly.
Traditionally elder care has been the responsibility of family members and was provided within the extended family home. Increasingly in modern societies, elder care is now being provided by state or charitable institutions. The reasons for this change include decreasing family size, the greater life expectancy of elderly people, the geographical dispersion of families, and the tendency for women to be educated and work outside the home. Although these changes have affected European and North American countries first, it is now increasingly affecting Asian countries also.[1]
According to Family Caregiver Alliance, the majority of family caregivers are women:
“Many studies have looked at the role of women and family caregiving. Although not all have addressed gender issues and caregiving specifically, the results are still generalizable [sic] to women because they are the majority of informal care providers in this country. Consider: • Estimates of the percentage of family or informal caregivers who are women range from 59% to 75%. • The average caregiver is age 46, female, married and working outside the home earning an annual income of $35,000. • Although men also provide assistance, female caregivers may spend as much as 50% more time providing care than male caregivers.”” [2]
In most western countries, elder care facilities are residential family care homes, freestanding assisted living facilities, nursing homes, and Continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs).
A Family Care Home is a residential home with support and supervisory personnel by an agency, organization, or individual that provides room and board, personal care and habilitation services in a family environment for at least two and no more than six persons.

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