Practical Study On Case Work Intervening In Stress Relief Of Disabled Elderly Caregivers

In recent years,China’s ageing has deepened,as evidenced by the high number of elderly people and the rising proportion of disabled elderly people.With the rapid development of the elderly care industry in China,people are more inclined to institutional care in the form of elderly care,of which caregivers are responsible for the daily life of the elderly.Compared to caregivers who take care of the elderly on their own,caregivers for the disabled have a much heavier and more difficult workload and are under greater physical and psychological stress,which is not only detrimental to the physical and mental health of the caregivers,but also affects the quality of services received by the disabled elderly.Therefore,it is important for the caregivers’ own physical and mental health as well as the development of the elderly care industry to find ways to alleviate the stress of caregivers of the elderly with disabilities.In this study,11 caregivers from R Hospital in Shanxi Province were selected to participate voluntarily in the study,and the basic information about the caregivers was collected through semi-structured interviews and participant observation,in an attempt to analyse how the caregivers behaved in the face of stress and the causes of the caregivers’ stress.The study revealed that the stress of caregivers of the disabled elderly was characterised by a decline in their physical condition,strain on their work,difficulty in resolving psychological stress,lack of balance between work and family,and lack of motivation to work;these stresses were caused by both internal and external factors.In this context,a casework approach was adopted,supported by social support theory and ABC theory,and the study was divided into old and new caregivers to analyse the stress faced by the case owners.The intervention was tailored to address the stress issues of new and existing caregivers,using empathy,encouragement and support techniques to help them overcome their difficulties.The intervention revealed that the caregivers changed from being passive to being proactive in dealing with stress,and finally a comparative analysis of the two cases was conducted based on the practice process,reflecting on the process and offering suggestions from different perspectives.In conclusion,this study found that casework interventions to alleviate the stress of caregivers of the elderly with disabilities were effective in increasing the caregivers’ enthusiasm and confidence in their work,strengthening the cohesion within the institution,enabling the caregivers to better realise their own values,enhancing their sense of self-efficacy,and providing better services to the elderly with disabilities.