Relationship between the adequacy of home care services and the career path of caregivers

This article examines to what extent the presence or absence, adequacy or i nadequacy of formal services impacts on the work trajectory of caregivers t o elderly relatives. The article is based on a qualitative study with 20 em ployed caregivers' whose elderly relatives received homecare services from one of two Montreal CLSCs: Results reveal the key role played by formal ser vices in caregivers' attempts to juggle caregiving demands with those of th eir employment. They illustrate how the presence or the insufficiency of th ese services, their adequacy or inadequacy, combined with the other accommo dations which caregivers put into place, can be determinants in caregivers' decisions to continue working and in their capacity to function well in th e work place.