INTERVENING TO REDUCE DISTRESS IN CAREGIVERS OF IMPAIRED ELDERLY PEOPLE - A PRELIMINARY EVALUATION

Data from a sample of 82 impaired elderly people and their carers were gathered before (T1) they started to receive support from a home-based care aide service. Several variables were significantly correlated with, but only two were predictive of reported carer distress at T1. Data gathered from a subsample of 45 carers after receiving support for 3 months (T2) showed that reported distress decreased significantly between T1 and T2. The only variable which significantly correlated with, and was predictive of carer distress at T2 was distress at T1. A ladder plot showed great variability in changes in distress with 11 subjects actually reporting increased distress at T2. There was no relationship between initial distress scores and change in distress over time. The implications of these findings are discussed.