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Full-Text Articles in Medical Humanities
Why I Brought My Mother Home, Barbara L. Gracious
Why I Brought My Mother Home, Barbara L. Gracious
HCA Healthcare Journal of Medicine
According to the Alzheimer’s Association, in the United States more than 16 million adult family members provide care for a relative with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementia. The economic value contributed by unpaid caregivers is $234 billion dollars. Such caregivers are vital to the ability of the U.S. to meet caretaking needs, as the projected number of individuals suffering from dementia will nearly triple over the next 30 years. A meta-analysis found that decisions to provide family caretaking are rooted in long-standing family relationships. This essay explores one family’s decision to move from long-term institutional care back to family-based care …