THE COSTS OF FAMILY CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE CARE OF PERSONS WITH DEMENTIA

This study focuses on the costs of dementia care incurred by families. Cost components operationalized include: costs of unpaid caregiver la bor services, paid and unpaid family labor, paid and unpaid services o f nonfamily persons, and cash outlays for equipment and services. Amon g 182 families of dementia patients, average care costs for a 3-month period amount to $4,564. Cash expenditures average only 29% of total c are costs, with unpaid labor accounting for 71% of the family care cos ts. Total care costs rise by $1,158 for each additional dependency in an activity of daily living (ADL), while reliance on paid services is 5% higher for each additional $10,000 household income and drops by 25 % if the patient lives in the caregiver's household.