Abstract

Adults caring for persons living with dementia are the second largest informal caregiver group not only in the United States but also Turkey because most people with dementia are older adults aged 65 and older. Dementia caregivers are more likely to experience a wide range of negative behaviors or health problems than persons with non-dementia health problems. For example, dementia caregivers frequently exhibit maladaptive coping strategies, express concern about their poor quality of life, experience lower self-rated health, and report a higher level of caregiver burden. In addition, dementia caregivers report severe sleep disturbances, clinical depression, and higher mortality compared to other caregivers. Interestingly, these negative effects of dementia caregiving project to their care recipients because caregivers and persons with dementia are interdependent in the family unit. These issues could be a concern for the caregivers of ill children, too. Thus, timely reduction of caregiver stress and related problems is critical for both caregivers and care recipients.
Medical education and medicine (as well as a psychologist, social worker, family counselor, nurse, etc) provide care for members of professional groups who are also people like themselves. After a while, these professionals begin experiencing burnout about themselves. To know the limits of the individual to cope with this situation, to escape from the pressure to be perfect, to be able to continue to grow and learn without losing motivation.

Key words: caregiver, burn-out syndrome, coping stress, life quality, emotional quantities, satisfaction of life