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Double-Duty Caregiving: Women in the Health Professions*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 March 2010

Catherine Ward-Griffin ,
Judith Belle Brown ,
Anthony Vandervoort ,
Susan McNair  and
Ian Dashnay
Catherine Ward-Griffin*
Affiliation:
Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Western Ontario
Judith Belle Brown
Affiliation:
Department of Family Medicine, University of Western Ontario Kings College, University of Western Ontario
Anthony Vandervoort
Affiliation:
Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Western Ontario
Susan McNair
Affiliation:
Department of Family Medicine, University of Western Ontario
Ian Dashnay
Affiliation:
Hospital of Saint Raphael, New Haven Connecticut
*
Requests for offprints should be sent to: / Les demandes de tirés-à-part doivent être addressées à : Dr. Catherine Ward-Griffin, Associate Professor, School of Nursing, Faculty of Health Science, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5C1. (cwg@uwo.ca)
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Abstract

The purpose of this feminist narrative study was to examine the experiences of women in four different health professions (nursing, medicine, physiotherapy, and social work) who provided care to elderly relatives. Although caring is a central and common feature of the personal and professional lives of many women (Baines, Evans, & Neysmith, 1991; Baines, 2004), the separation of professional, paid caregiving from family, unpaid caregiving among health care providers is problematic. Study findings suggest that female health professionals who assume familial responsibilities continually negotiate the boundaries between their professional and personal caring work. Despite the use of a variety of strategies for managing their double-duty caregiving demands, many women experienced a dramatic blurring or erosion of these boundaries, resulting in feelings of isolation, tension, and extreme physical and mental exhaustion. These findings suggest that women who are double-duty caregivers, especially those with limited time, finances, or other tangible supports, may experience poor health, which warrants further study.

Résumé

Le but de cette analyse narrative féministe était d'étudier les expériences de femmes qui oeuvrent dans quatre professions médicales différentes (soins infirmiers, médecine, physiothérapie et travail social) et qui fournissent des soins à certains de leurs proches du troisième âge. Bien que la prestation de soins soit un élément central et commun des vies personnelles et professionnelles de nombreuses femmes (Baines, Evans et Neysmith, 1991; Baines, 2004), la séparation entre les soins professionnels rémunérés et les soins familiaux non rémunérés, chez les fournisseurs de soins de santé, est problématique. Les conclusions de l'étude semblent indiquer que les professionnelles de la santé qui assument des responsabilités familiales négocient constamment les limites entre les soins qu'ils fournissent à titre professionnel et à titre personnel. Malgré l'utilisation de diverses stratégies visant à gérer leur double fonction en matière de prestation de soins, de nombreuses femmes ont ressenti un effacement ou une érosion de ces limites, ce qui a donné lieu à des sentiments d'isolement, de tension et de fatigue physique et mentale extrême. Ces résultats révèlent que les femmes qui fournissent des soins dans ces deux contextes, surtout celles qui disposent de peu de temps, d'argent et d'autres soutiens concrets, peuvent avoir des problèmes de santé, ce qui justifierait des études plus poussées.

Keywords

agingfamily caregivingeldercarehealth care professionalsgenderhealthworkvieillissementprestation de soins dans la famillesoins aux aînésprofessionnels de la santésexesantétravail
Type
Articles
Information
Canadian Journal on Aging / La Revue canadienne du vieillissement , Volume 24 , Issue 4 , Winter/Hiver 2005 , pp. 379 - 394
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Association on Gerontology 2005

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Footnotes

*

This study was funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (Internal Fund of the University ofWestern Ontario). A previous version of this article was presented at the scientific meeting of the Canadian Association on Gerontology and at the North American Primary Care Research Group Meeting. The authors wish to acknowledge the technical assistance of Abram Oudshoorn with the preparation of Figures 1 and 2.

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