Journal of Korean Geriatric Psychiatry

노인정신의학

pISSN 1226-6329 / eISSN 2733-4600


노인정신의학

대한노인정신의학회 (9권1호 50-56)

The Reality of Services for Families with Demented Elderly People

치매노인가족에 대한 서비스 실태

한은주(Eun Joo Han);정한용(Han Yong Jung);이강준(Kang Joon Lee)

Abstract

Objectives:The purpose of this study was to look into caregivers who took care of their demented elderly family members in an effort to find out what types of services they actually called for and how to make a diagnosis of demented elderly people, provide treatment to them and make an intervention for their families at the same time. Methods:The subjects in this study were 61 psychiatrists, neurologists and rehabilitation doctors who were in charge of demented elderly people, and they were members of the Korean Geriatrics Society and Korean Association for Geriatric Psychiatry. Results:As for interest in helping caregivers for demented elderly people get rid of their stress, 45.9 percent (28 doctors) of the medical personnels investigated answered they tended to have lots of interest in that. To get them to dispel their stress, they conducted education (13 doctors), offered supportive treatment and encouragement (24 doctors) or provide mental treatment and encouragement (24 doctors) or provide mental treatment or medication if necessary (8 doctors). Conclusion:Medical intervention should be carried out to alleviate the behavioral and psychological symptoms of the elderly with dementia to help their caregivers not to be under pressure. Their stress should be managed in a systematic manner according to the dementia grade of patients they look after. A sort of one-stop service network should be built to lend assistance to main caregivers, and the government should set up a family support policy for them.

Keywords

치매노인가족,부양스트레스,원스톱서비스, Demented elderly family members,Caregiving stress,One-stop service