Neighbor News
What Do Male Caregivers Want?
A look at what the support these unpaid family caregivers need.
Male Caregiving Population Growing
Current statistics show that there are approximately 16 million men in the country who are caring for family members. According to Sherri Snelling, a caregiving expert, about forty percent of today’s caregivers are men.
She wrote that the number of men as caregivers has been growing over the last several years, according to a study in the Journal of Gerontological Social Work, among other reports. The increase in male caregivers reflects the changing demographics in our country, shrinking family sizes and an evolution of gender roles.
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To help bring attention to this fact, two organizations are working to help spread the word that male caregivers count, too. What’s important about this is the fact that men are becoming more involved in taking care of dependent family members, including aging and ill parents.
It’s fair to say, as a man who was a caregiver for his terminally ill wife, that these people deserve recognition for what they do. They also need support and resources that can make a difference for them.
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Support is Available
Caregiving organization and agencies are listening. Because studies and surveys show that men want more online access to support, there is now at least one online international caregiving community. For example, Homewatch Caregivers has designed a site that helps men manage caregiving tasks. It also addresses their desire to have access to information specific to their loved one’s condition, such as cancer. They provide links to condition-specific websites and instructional videos.
It is important to remember that men as well as women can be ideal caregivers. They, too, are willing to take on that role in order to make sure their loved one is honored and that his or her quality of life remains intact.
To read Snellings’ complete Next Avenue article, click here.
J. Dietrich Stroeh is author of Three Months: A Caregiver’s Journey from Heartbreak to Healing (2011 FolkHeart Press) and three free ebooks. For more information, visit www.threemonthsbook.com.
