What Carers Value – Review of Carer Literature and Practice, November 2004

A report by NARI funded by DHS, November 2004

Introduction

Unpaid family and other informal care accounts for around 74% of the support provided to older people and persons with a disability in Australia, currently saving our economy at least $19.3 billion per year (Carers Victoria, 2004). Much of this support is provided by and for older people. As the population ages, it is expected that the need for carers to assist older people to remain in their own homes will increase. It is important therefore to consider how caring should be taken into account in public policy and how carers should be supported in the role.

There has been a great deal of research about carers published in the last 20 years. There is also a great deal of unpublished practice wisdom (grey literature) about the needs of carers and the best ways to support them. This report is a review of the published and grey literature about current issues and practices for unpaid family carers. It was commissioned by the Department of Human Service (DHS) Victoria, Aged Care Branch and undertaken by the National Ageing Research Institute (NARI) in 2004.

The aims of this review were to identify:

• Current areas of concern for carers and carer advocates;

• Current good practice in working with and supporting carers; and

• Gaps in published/peer reviewed and grey literature.

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"What carers value", a report by NARI funded by DHS, November 2004 (210kb, pdf)