Balance for informal caregivers
Since the decentralizations in the Dutch care system, the support of informal care givers has become increasingly important. However, efforts of local governments and care- or welfare organizations will often remain fragmentary if they do not start by asking: what do informal care workers need to keep a healthy balance in their lives?
Together with the Faculty of Social Work of the Swiss Fachhochschule Sankt Gallen, Movisie developed a model based on international literature and practical research and focused on that particular question of balance. The model ‘Balance for Informal Caregivers’ shows which reasons in which processes affect that balance. Next to this, it identifies the factors that can be influenced by informal care policy. In all this, it is crucial to never lose sight of the person, the informal caregiver. The Balance model answers these questions. Research shows that there are four factors affecting the balance or unbalance of informal carers:
- The extent to which the role of informal caregiver is adopted.
- The extent to which the caregiver continues with or discards other responsibilities.
- Increasing or decreasing the role of the (in)formal care network.
- The outcome of the resilience-burden ratio: the energy balance.
For more information see the article Balance for informal caregivers