'People are burnt out': Caregivers call for national strategy in wake of new report
A new report is highlighting the struggles of caregivers left to support family members who are aging, sick, or have disabilities, and is calling on a national strategy to recognize the financial and mental toll the often unpaid jobs can take.
The results of an online survey conducted by the Canadian Centre for Caregiving Excellence involving nearly 3,100 respondents is now shedding light on the rapidly growing problem.
The survey revealed that one-fifth of caregivers are over the age of 65, and who are often in need of help themselves.
On average, respondents said they spend five hours a day delivering care, and one-quarter of respondents reported poor mental health.
"I had my grandmother living with us growing up. First she took care of me, then she developed dementia. I took care of her starting at the age of 10. I saw my mom through a palliative care journey and I’m now caring for my dad who is aging,” explained Linda Mendelsson, executive director at the Canadian Centre for Caregiving Excellence.
Liv Mendelson's story is just one of 6.4 million Canadians who are currently caring for loved ones.
"Most people will be a caregiver once in their lifetime and some people are caring for more than one person: a family member, friend, spouse neighbour,” she said. "We've heard from thousands of caregivers who are in crisis."
Half of respondents said they experienced financial stress over the past year, and 88 per cent of senior caregiver respondents said they want an income tax credit to help with everyday costs.
"The pocketbook issues are real. Caregivers spend about $1,000 on average per month on out of pocket expenses that aren’t covered. It should be a choice whether to put food on the table or care for your mom,” Mendelson said.
She added, "People are burnt out. We saw that definitely through COVID. We are still in that crisis state that we haven't leaned the lessons of COVID."
The Canadian Centre for Caregiving Excellence is now directly working with the federal government.
This year's budget includes consultations to develop a national strategy, which Mendelson said she is honoured to play a role in.
"We are working really hard to build a care movement in this country and create better systems and supports for tomorrow,” she said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Signs of Alzheimer’s were everywhere. Then his brain improved
Blood biomarkers of telltale signs of early Alzheimer’s disease in the brain of his patient, 55-year-old entrepreneur Simon Nicholls, had all but disappeared in a mere 14 months.
Flammable kids' sleepwear, salmonella-contaminated chips: Here are the recalls of this week
Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency issued recalls for various items this week, including kids' bassinets, chips, and stoves. Here's what to watch out for.
Lyon-bound Air Canada Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner from Montreal turns back midflight due to pressurization alert
Passengers heading from Montreal to Lyon, France on Friday were forced to return home and depart the next day after a pressurization indication was detected in flight.
U.S. ambassador 'not aware' of any plans for Trudeau-Trump meeting
Canada's Ambassador to the United States says she's 'not aware' of any plans for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to meet with former U.S. president and presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump before the November American election.
Sentencing trial set to begin for Florida man who executed 5 women at a bank in 2019
Zephen Xaver walked into a central Florida bank in 2019, fatally shot five women and then called police to tell them what he did. Now 12 jurors will decide whether the 27-year-old former prison guard trainee is sentenced to death or life without parole.
'How do you get hypothermia in a prison?' Records show hospitalizations among Virginia inmates
The Virginia State Police investigator seemed puzzled about what the inmate was describing: "unbearable" conditions at a prison so cold that toilet water would freeze over and inmates were repeatedly treated for hypothermia.
The secret Italian lakes that most tourists don't know about
Italy has dozens of secret smaller lakes that boast superb scenery, unknown to mass tourism, where locals get together on day trips and enjoy picnics.
Canadian immigration asks medical worker fleeing Gaza if he treated Hamas fighters
Lawyers are questioning Canada’s approach to screening visa applications for people in Gaza with extended family in Canada after one applicant, a medical worker, was asked whether he had treated members of Hamas.
Walmart, Costco refusing to sign grocery code of conduct 'untenable': industry minister
Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne says it's 'untenable' for 'smaller players' like Walmart and Costco to delay signing on to the government- and industry-led grocery code of conduct, now that industry giant Loblaw has agreed to do so.