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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Aging and Public Health
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1459517
This article is part of the Research Topic The Formal and Informal Workforce for a Global Aging Population View all 3 articles

Exploring Challenges and Coping Strategies in Providing Care for Older Adults with Dementia: A Qualitative Study conducted in China

Provisionally accepted
Yanan Cheng Yanan Cheng Meijiazi Yang Meijiazi Yang Sha Ma Sha Ma *
  • Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The increasing prevalence of dementias in China has imposed a substantial burden on caregivers, posing a serious threaten to their physical and mental well-being. It is imperative to explore practical measures to alleviate the stress experienced by those caregivers of older adults with dementia.Methods A semi-structured questionnaire was adopted for conducting interviews with the participants from December 2022 to January 2023. Subsequently, the interviews were meticulously recorded and transcribed in their entirety, followed by a rigorous analysis of the resulting data and information.Results A total of 17 participants who provided care for older adults with dementia were interviewed across various settings including rural areas, communities, hospitals, and nursing homes in Shandong Province. These caregivers encountered challenges such as limited social interaction, significant mental strain, deteriorating physical health, financial insufficiency, and a lack of professional expertise. The current social support systems were deemed insufficient for families caring for older adults with dementia. To alleviate the burden on dementia caregivers, particularly for those with low-income status, the government needs to prioritize enhancing the coverage of the long-term healthcare system and expanding the essential medication list.Given the growing population of older adults in China and the fact that most individuals with dementia are cared for by family members, it is recommended to establish a multifaceted support system involving collaboration among government, social organizations, and volunteers within both urban and rural communities.The gradual expansion of coverage of long-term care insurance, the proactive inclusion of dementia treatment drugs into the essential medication list, and optimization of a diversified dementia care system ought to be a matter of significant concern.

    Keywords: Dementia, older adults, Caregivers burden, long-term care insurance, qualitative research

    Received: 04 Jul 2024; Accepted: 09 Jan 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Cheng, Yang and Ma. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Sha Ma, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, China

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