title: Who is looking after Mom and Dad? Unregulated workers in Canadian long-term care homes.
abstract: Older adults living in residential long-term care or nursing homes have increasingly complex needs, including more dementia than in the past, yet we know little about the unregulated workforce providing care. We surveyed 1,381 care aides in a representative sample of 30 urban nursing homes in the three Canadian Prairie provinces and report demographic, health and well-being, and work-related characteristics. Over 50 per cent of respondents were not born in Canada and did not speak English as their first language. They reported moderately high levels of burnout and a strong sense of their work's worth. Few respondents reported attending educational sessions. This direct caregiver workforce is poorly understood, has limited training or standards for minimum education, and training varies widely across provinces. Workplace characteristics affecting care aides reflect factors that precipitate burnout in allied health professions, with implications for quality of care, staff health, and staff retention.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Nursing,University of Alberta.
authors.forename: Carole A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Estabrooks
authors.affiliation: Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and School of Nursing,University of Ottawa.
authors.forename: Janet E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Squires
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Nursing,University of Alberta.
authors.forename: Heather L
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Carleton
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Nursing,University of Alberta.
authors.forename: Greta G
authors.initials: GG
authors.lastname: Cummings
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine,University of Calgary.
authors.forename: Peter G
authors.initials: PG
authors.lastname: Norton
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002055:Burnout, Professional; D002170:Canada; D017028:Caregivers / Q000193:education / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D016330:Frail Elderly; D006707:Homes for the Aged; D006801:Humans; D007588:Job Satisfaction; D008004:Licensure; D008134:Long-Term Care; D008297:Male; D009735:Nursing Homes; D009740:Nursing Staff / Q000193:education / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D012042:Registries; D000078329:Workforce
keywords: main d'oeuvre de services de santé non-règlementé