Accuracy of Caregiver Proxy Reports of Home Care Service Use

Although much of the research on service use by older adults with dementia relies on proxy reports by informal caregivers, little research assesses the accuracy of these reports, and that which does exist, does not focus on home care services. This brief report compares proxy reports by family caregivers to those with dementia with provincial Ministry of Health records collected for payment and monitoring. The four home care services examined include home nursing care, adult day care, home support, and respite care. Data come from a province-wide study of caregivers in British Columbia, Canada. Caregiver reports are largely consistent with Ministry records, ranging from 81.0% agreement for home support to 96.6% for respite care. Spouses living with the care recipient (the vast majority of the sample) are the most accurate. Others, whether living with the care recipient or not, have only a 50-50 chance of being correct.