A survey of those who care for the elderly at home: their problems and their needs.

One thousand and sixty-six over 70s were interviewed in their own homes, 256 of the subjects had main carers who were non-statutory. These informal carers of the dependent elderly were then interviewed to examine the nature of the care that they provided, the assistance both formal and informal that they received and the consequences such caring had on their quality of life. The evidence from this study supports the view that the family is the main source of assistance to dependent elderly; usually the woman in the family. Very little assistance, either informal or formal, was received by the carers. Consequently there was a great deal of distress and psychological morbidity among the carers.