What support do caregivers of elderly want? Results from the Canadian Study of Health and Aging

The aim of this paper is to document interest in support strategies among c aregivers of elderly persons. We used data from the Canadian Study of Healt h and Aging caregiver questionnaire which included 43 informal caregivers o f elderly persons living with dementia and 145 informal caregivers of elder ly persons not living with dementia. While tl e study assessed interest in attending support groups (10.4%), receiving telephone support from either a professional (44.9%) or a fellow caregiver (41.0%), receiving a newsletter (40.5%), receiving volunteer support (24.2%), and interest in support via computer (14.8%), there were no significant differences between the two gro ups with regard to interest in any of the support services. Implications fo r program delivery are discussed. Planners may want to consider adding tele phone support and newsletters to other supports already available for careg ivers.