Caring for those who care for dependent elderly: For a necessary and urgent policy

Abstract

The situation of caregivers and family caregivers of dependent elderly people is presented and discussed, highlighting their dedication, problems and possible referrals to value them. It is known that the task of caring is eminently feminine, invisible, unpaid, but it affects society as a whole. The policies of some European countries, Canada and the United States in favor of caregivers and caregivers are described. However, most existing support models have gaps; the laws and regulations created have been poorly understood, inorganic and the family remains responsible for long-lived relatives who have lost their autonomy. In the European Union, the tendency is to integrate the familiar care as the first level of primary health, making support to the caregivers universal. It must not be forgotten that the tendency to keep the elderly dependent at home is acquiescence to their own desire, but it also hides the delegation of responsibility from the State to families through policies of deshospitalization and deinstitutionalization. In Brazil, the issue has not yet entered the public policy radar, although it is urgent because of the accelerated increase of the elderly population, in particular, those aged 80 and over.