Hours of Care and Caring Tasks Performed by Australian Carers of Adults with Mental Illness: Results from an Online Survey

Emily Hielscher; Sandra Diminic; Jan Kealton; Meredith Harris; Yong Yi Lee; Harvey Whiteford

doi:10.1007/s10597-018-0244-x

Hours of Care and Caring Tasks Performed by Australian Carers of Adults with Mental Illness: Results from an Online Survey

Emily Hielscher, Sandra Diminic, Jan Kealton, Meredith Harris, Yong Yi Lee, Harvey Whiteford

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review

18 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The aim of this study was to provide a detailed profile of the hours of care Australian mental health carers provide for different types of caring tasks. The UQ Carer Survey 2016 was administered online to 105 adults caring for someone aged 16 years or older whose main condition is mental illness. Mental health carers reported providing on average 37.2 h of care per week to their main care recipient. Carers spent most of their active caring time providing emotional support, and the least of their time assisting with activities of daily living. Carers highlighted that this care time fluctuates with the undulating nature of mental illness, and many noted additional hours devoted to being ‘on call’ in case of emergency. Carers provide large amounts of support on a long-term and often unpredictable basis. Government services need to match the undulating nature of the illness by providing more flexible support options for mental health carers.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	279-295
Number of pages	17
Journal	Community Mental Health Journal
Volume	55
Issue number	2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-018-0244-x
Publication status	Published - Feb 2019
Externally published	Yes

Keywords

Australia
Caregivers
Carers
Mental health
Mental illness

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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10.1007/s10597-018-0244-x

Cite this

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abstract = "The aim of this study was to provide a detailed profile of the hours of care Australian mental health carers provide for different types of caring tasks. The UQ Carer Survey 2016 was administered online to 105 adults caring for someone aged 16 years or older whose main condition is mental illness. Mental health carers reported providing on average 37.2 h of care per week to their main care recipient. Carers spent most of their active caring time providing emotional support, and the least of their time assisting with activities of daily living. Carers highlighted that this care time fluctuates with the undulating nature of mental illness, and many noted additional hours devoted to being {\textquoteleft}on call{\textquoteright} in case of emergency. Carers provide large amounts of support on a long-term and often unpredictable basis. Government services need to match the undulating nature of the illness by providing more flexible support options for mental health carers.",

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Hours of Care and Caring Tasks Performed by Australian Carers of Adults with Mental Illness: Results from an Online Survey

Abstract

Keywords

UN SDGs

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