N.S. caregivers participating in study hope research helps reveal their struggles

Researchers are working on a study that aims to describe the unmet needs of thousands of volunteer caregivers in Nova Scotia.

Lesley McGill says being the main caregiver to her son and to her mother was a massive task, made harder by struggles to find financial aid and moments to rest.

“You put off all your needs until later … there was no reprieve,” said the 47-year-old resident of Lawrencetown, N.S., a participant in a study that aims to describe the unmet needs of thousands of volunteer caregivers in Nova Scotia.

Between 2013 and 2017, McGill supported her son while he underwent leukemia treatments and also cared for her mother, who started to develop Alzheimer’s disease during that period. She says governments, hospitals and the public need to hear stories like hers.

The research is being carried out by the centre on aging at Mount Saint Vincent University and by Caregivers Nova Scotia. Findings will be sent to the provincial Department of Seniors and Long-Term Care, which is funding the $250,000 project.

Janice Keefe, director of the centre on aging, cites Statistics Canada data estimating that about 28 per cent of Nova Scotians 15 years old and older provide some unpaid care — totalling about 221 million hours of care every year.

The research project involves focus groups with up to 15 people per group, she said in an interview Tuesday. The project, she added, also involves a survey, which caregivers can complete online.

“We’re trying to understand what would help (caregivers), both in terms of their own well-being and how to support them,” Keefe said. “It might be the workplace lacks supportive policies, or the financial burden of care is stopping them from being able to continue.”

Keefe said Canadian society is aging and options are needed to keep elders and those living with disabilities from being moved to overburdened long-term care facilities.