Caregiving For Alzheimer's Disease And Related Dementias: Enhancing The National Study Of Caregiving (Nsoc)

• PIs:             Judith Kasper, PhD, and Vicki Freedman, PhD (University of Michigan);  co-investigator Jennifer Wolff, PhD
• Funder:      National Institute on Aging
• Status:        Ongoing

This project enhances understanding of caregiving to older adults with Alzheimer's disease and related dementia through new national longitudinal data that builds upon the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) and its companion National Study of Caregiving (NSOC). The unique NSOC study design and new content proposed for NSOC III will permit contrasts between caregivers to older adults with and without Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD) for a nationally representative sample of caregivers who help older adult participants in the NHATS. By collecting, disseminating, and analyzing a new round of NSOC, the proposed project will allow researchers to study a range of innovative questions about ADRD caregiving and its consequences from the perspective of both the care recipient and the caregiver. 

Aims are: (1) Re-interview caregivers: administer a new module on involvement in medical care and two time diary interviews to capture activities and experienced wellbeing on the previous day. (2) Disseminate the data widely by creating a set of easy-to-use linked longitudinal files; holding user workshops at scientific meetings; and hosting an early results workshop focused on ADRD caregiving. (3) Conduct analyses to: 1) identify salient ADRD informal care and caregiving trajectories from both recipient and caregiver perspectives; 2) provide the first national profile of informal ADRD caregivers' health system interactions; and 3) investigate the wellbeing of informal ADRD caregivers and the role of care activities.

Links:

National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS)

Watch the National Study of Caregiving Video Here