CAREGIVERS EXPERIENCES IN MAKING PLACEMENT DECISIONS

Demographic trends indicate a growth in the older adult population, an d in turn, are affecting the availability and use of health services. Although placement of an older adult charge into nursing home care is often described as a logical progression through the continuum of avai lable services, informal caregivers often view placement as a last res ort or as an indication of failure. This qualitative study used ground ed theory methods to explore the experiences of care-givers actively i nvolved in the process of placing an older adult in a long-term care f acility upon discharge from acute care. Four themes (uncertainty, surr endering to the system, urgency, and validating) were interwoven throu ghout caregivers' perspectives of the conflictive decision to use nurs ing home care after hospitalization.