Eurocarers has published a new report setting out the findings of research it undertook in collaboration with the Centre for Socio-Economic Research on Ageing at IRCCS-INRCA (National Institute of Health and Science on Ageing, Italy), examining the impact of COVID-19 on informal caregivers. Specifically, the work sought to:
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Document and analyse how the COVID-19 out-break impacted on informal/family/unpaid carers’ health, caregiving situation, support networks, access to health and social services, working status, work-life balance and finances
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Collect the views and recommendations of carers on how to better support them in times of a pandemic.
The survey received 2,468 responses across, with the majority of responses coming from Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Italy, Portugal and Sweden. The survey noted that there was an in increase in the average number of hours provided by informal caregivers, with a significant majority reporting negative impact on their quality of life (77%) and their mental health/psychological state of mind (67%). A majority reported feeling overwhelmed as a result of the pandemic (62%), whilst only 18% of carers felt that their caregiving role was valued by society. For a number of the findings, the exacerbated gender imbalance was noted (e.g. the high number of women carers overall, a greater increase in hours of informal care provided by women etc). The report concludes with a number of broad policy implications, including addressing gender imbalances, issues relating to work-life balance, improving social protections and pensions, and strengthening health and social care services.
You can download the report at: https://eurocarers.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/EUC-Covid-study-report-2021.pdf
