Carers of older Australians: unmet support needs and carer well-being

Primary carers play an important role in supporting the Australian Government's policy of 'ageing in place' or encouraging people to receive care in their own homes or communities rather than in institutions. Supporting carers in their role is therefore an important aspect of the policy's success. Despite numerous programs in place, this study finds that among carers of older Australians, a relatively high proportion (39%) cite unmet needs in their carer role, including a need for financial support, physical assistance, emotional support, improvement in carer health and more respite care. Concerningly, unmet support needs were shown to be strongly associated with markers of poor carer well-being, including an almost 2-fold increase in odds of poor carer satisfaction (odds ratio (OR) 1.77, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.24-2.51), a 4- to 5-fold increase in the odds of changes to physical and emotional well-being (OR 5.29, 95% CI 3.83-7.31), deterioration in financial situation (OR 4.60, 95% CI 3.26-6.48) and strained carer-recipient relationship (OR 3.79, 95% CI 2.39-6.01).