ADMISSION TO CARE - FACILITATING ROLE TRANSITION AMONGST FAMILY CARERS

Admission to care after a period of family care-giving has been the fo cus of much recent research. Rather than being seen as an end in itsel f, admission is part of a process. This article concentrates on 'reach ing the end' of family care-giving and the 'new beginning' of entering residential care. A cross-national study conducted in the USA and the UK is discussed, and similarities and differences in the two cultures are highlighted. Decisions to enter a nursing home were often taken h urriedly and with lack of information in both countries. Issues of qua lity of care and emotional responses by former carers were also import ant in both settings.