title: Rural Caregivers for a Family Member With Dementia: Models of Burden and Distress Differ for Women and Men.
abstract: Forecasts of increasing prevalence of dementia in rural settings, coupled with reliance on family caregiver support, indicate that a greater understanding of caregiver distress in these contexts is necessary. The purpose of this study was to examine family caregiver burden and severity of distress on the day that a family member was diagnosed with dementia at a memory clinic that serves a rural population. Participants in this retrospective study were 231 primary family caregivers of a rural community-dwelling person with dementia. On the diagnostic day, women reported more burden and severity of distress than men and spouses reported more severity of distress than adult children. A structural equation model was not supported for the entire sample, but was supported for women caregivers only (n = 161). Caregiver distress related to dementia-specific behaviors explained both global distress and burden. Patients' functional decline was related to caregiver burden.
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada norma.stewart@usask.ca.
authors.forename: Norma J
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Stewart
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada.
authors.forename: Debra G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Morgan
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada.
authors.forename: Chandima P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Karunanayake
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada.
authors.forename: Joseph P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Wickenhauser
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada.
authors.forename: Allison
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cammer
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada.
authors.forename: Duane
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Minish
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada.
authors.forename: Megan E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: O'Connell
authors.affiliation: University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada.
authors.forename: Leslie A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Hayduk
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002170:Canada / Q000453:epidemiology; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D003704:Dementia / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008960:Models, Psychological; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012424:Rural Population; D012737:Sex Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*
keywords: caregiving; dementia; gender; rural and remote health care