Bound in an Imbalanced Relationship: Family Caregivers and Migrant Live-In Care-Workers of Frail Older Persons in Israel.

Migrant care-workers (MCWs) are often the main caregivers for frail older persons. We examined the complex relationship between MCWs and primary family caregivers (PFCs) in Israel to better understand how MCWs and PFCs perceive the formal and informal nature of their relationship. Given the high prevalence of two-income families who are unavailable for caregiving, the relationships among MCWs, PFCs, and care-recipients warrants examination, particularly when PFCs serve as managers of care and the care-recipient has dementia.

Predictors of Quality-of-Care Provided by Migrant Live-In Caregivers of Frail older Persons: A Cross-Sectional Study.

We examined the association between employment-related characteristics and the quality-of-care migrant live-in caregivers provide to older care-recipients. Structured interviews were conducted with 115 migrant live-in caregivers, 72 older care-recipients, and 117 relatives of care-recipients. We conducted correlations among dependent (quality-of-care), independent (quality of relationship between caregiver and informant, caregiver perception of work, and problematic employment conditions), and demographic variables, and performed a path analysis by conducting a series of multiple regressions.

Shorter Telomeres Among Individuals With Physical Disability: The Moderating Role of Perceived Stress.

Objectives: Evidence suggests that individuals with physical disability may suffer from psychological distress and accelerated cellular aging, manifested by shortened telomere length (TL), compared with healthy individuals. Studies indicate that high levels of perceived stress and depression may increase the physiological susceptibility and, thus, may contribute to a short TL. However, the moderating role of perceived stress and depression within the relationship between physical disability and TL remains unknown.

Responses and Interventions to Delusions Experienced by Community-Dwelling Older Persons With Dementia.

We examined how family caregivers react, and what interventions they use in response to delusions exhibited by relatives with dementia in a community setting. Structured interviews were conducted with 68 family caregivers whose relatives were described as experiencing delusions based on the BEHAVE-AD or the NPI. Quantitatively, we cross-tabulated the type of response to delusion by the type of person providing the response and by the type of delusion manifested.

New Instrument for the Evaluation of Prodromes and Attacks of Hereditary Angioedema (HAE-EPA).

A disease-specific, patient-reported outcome instrument suitable for evaluation of prodromes and attacks of hereditary angioedema (HAE) is a clinical unmet need. We constructed such instrument and examined its validity, acceptability, and discriminative ability. Sixty-six patients participated in a survey addressing their demographics, social, and medical status.

Predictors of Migrant Live-in Care Workers' Burden/Burnout and Job Satisfaction When Caring for Frail Older Persons in Israel.

Objectives: To clarify how work characteristics affect migrant live-in care workers' burden/burnout as well as their job satisfaction.

Methods: Data from 116 migrant live-in care workers were collected in 2013-2014 in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem through structured interviews about their job satisfaction and their degree of burden/burnout. Due to the conceptual and empirical similarity (zero-order correlation and joint internal reliability), of burden and burnout, the 2 were combined into one variable.

Chronic Pain and Premature Aging - The Moderating Role of Physical Exercise.

Chronic pain induces a multitude of harmful effects; recently it has been suggested that chronic pain is also associated with premature aging, manifested in shortened telomere length (TL). However, evidence for this hypothesis is scarce and inconsistent. The aim was twofold: 1) Investigate whether chronic pain is associated with premature aging, and 2) Determine whether physical exercise (PE) moderates this association if it exists.

Mini research projects as a mechanism to improve the quality of dementia care.

Several models have been proposed to connect academia and practice in order to improve long-term care. In this paper we propose and describe the "Mini-Research Group" as an alternative model of such collaboration. The formation of mini-research groups was the unplanned by-product of a longitudinal action research project headed by the late Prof.

Aging of Holocaust Survivors: Discrepancies Between Subjective and General Health in the greater Tel Aviv Area.

Aging has been associated with perceived lowering of health, especially in post-traumatic individuals. The effects may be more complex or even different for Holocaust survivors as they age due to their inherited resilience and life perspective. A cross-sectional study was conducted of Holocaust survivors and a matched comparison group recruited from the general Israeli population.

Quality of care for frail older persons in a homecare setting: what is it and how can it be measured?

Unlabelled: ABSTRACTBackground:As more older persons opt to age in place, there is a growing trend to hire migrant workers as live-in caregivers to care for them. This raises the need to examine the quality of care they receive within this unique care setting. The objective of this pilot study was to establish the components of quality of care as provided by migrant live-in caregivers.

Social Engagement Care for Frail Older Persons: Desire for It and Provision by Live-In Migrant Caregivers.

Objectives: To describe social engagement care (SEC) provided by live-in migrant caregivers for frail older adults compared with care recipients' and families' wishes for such care.

Method: Interviews with care recipients, family members, and migrant caregivers assessed preferences for and provision of five types of SEC activities: knowing the older person as a person, knowing their main concerns, having personal conversations, going for walks, and sharing social or leisure activities.

Results: Care recipients and family proxies reported a moderate desire for SEC from migrant caregivers, except for sharing leisure activities, for which there was only a slight preference.

Rethinking Psychosis in Dementia: An Analysis of Antecedents and Explanations.

An in-depth analysis of qualitative data regarding antecedents, consequences, and descriptions of delusions of persons with dementia (PwD) provided by family caregivers is presented. Three broad classifications of reasons given behind types of delusions are included, namely environmental factors, personal factors, and dementia, with dementia being the most prominent factor. We observed an overlap between known cognitive symptoms of dementia and the characteristics of the reported "delusions" in dementia.

Ageism among physicians, nurses, and social workers: findings from a qualitative study.

This study investigated ageism among healthcare professionals in various therapeutic settings in Israel. Using a qualitative approach, the current study aimed to examine similarities and differences across healthcare disciplines. Three focus groups were conducted with physicians, nurses, and social workers.

The impact of psychotic symptoms on the persons with dementia experiencing them.

Objective: To portray the emotional and behavioral reactions of persons with dementia to the delusions and hallucinations they experience, according to the reports of their family caregivers. The article also explores the relationship between those reactions and background variables.

Methods: Study participants were family caregivers of 74 older persons with a diagnosis of dementia (aged ≥ 65) residing in the community recruited from adult day centers and support groups for caregivers of persons with dementia and by advertising online.

Reactions and Interventions for Delusions in Nursing Home Residents with Dementia.

This is a qualitative and quantitative study examining institutional staff members' reactions to delusions experienced by nursing home residents. Participants were 38 nursing home residents aged 65 and older, diagnosed with dementia. Data were collected from 8 nursing homes in Israel between June 2007 and January 2009.

Balancing psychache and resilience in aging Holocaust survivors.

Background: Psychache can and does co-exist alongside resilience and coping amongst trauma survivors. This has been the center of the a-integrative theory of aging demonstrating an attitude to life based on cognitive and emotional dimensions. Aging of Holocaust survivors (HS) is especially difficult when focus is brought to the issue of integrating their life history.

Delusions and hallucinations in persons with dementia: a comparison of the perceptions of formal and informal caregivers.

This study compares formal and informal caregivers' perceptions of delusions and hallucinations in older persons with dementia (PWDs). The study population consisted of 151 community-dwelling PWDs aged 65 and older, 90 formal caregivers, and 151 informal caregivers residing in Israel. Assessments included the Behavioral Pathology in Alzheimer's Disease Rating Scale, Neuropsychiatric Inventory, Etiological Assessment of Psychotic Symptoms in Dementia, Activities of Daily Living, and Mini-Mental State Examination.

Physicians' practice and familiarity with treatment for agitation associated with dementia in Israeli nursing homes.

Background: To clarify physicians' actual practice in treating agitation in the nursing home and to elucidate the relationship between background factors, familiarity with interventions, and practice.

Methods: A survey of actual practice for agitation in persons with dementia was administered to 67 physicians aged 31-70+ working in nursing homes in Israel. Questionnaires were administered by personal interview, self-completed, or a combination of the two.

Analysis of caregiver perceptions of "hallucinations" in people with dementia in institutional settings.

This study investigated the meanings and etiologies of hallucinations in persons with dementia. Participants were 74 nursing home residents aged ≥ 65 diagnosed with dementia. Most of the reported visual and auditory hallucinations involved talking to persons who are not present, a phenomenon described as either a visual or auditory hallucination, or both.

The meanings of delusions in dementia: a preliminary study.

One of the common symptoms of dementia is delusions. Due to a biological conceptualization of the behaviors represented as delusions, these are classified as psychotic symptoms. This is a qualitative and quantitative study aiming to describe the delusions experienced by older persons with dementia and the context of occurrence, and to elucidate their etiology.

Does late onset depression predispose to dementia? A retrospective, case-controlled study.

Background: Recent research suggests that there are clinical and biologic characteristics typical of late onset depression (LOD). Furthermore, evidence has been put forward that LOD may be a prodrome of dementia.

Objective: This study aims to assess the association between LOD and the development of dementia.

The measurement of psychosis in dementia: a comparison of assessment tools.

The precise operational definition of psychosis in dementia lacks consensus, partially owing to incongruence in the various assessment tools used. This study compares assessments of psychotic symptoms in persons with dementia, specifically of hallucinations and delusions, through the 4 most frequently used assessments. Participants were 74 nursing home residents from 9 nursing homes in Israel, diagnosed with dementia.

Utilization of self-identity roles for designing interventions for persons with dementia.

To date, little research has systematically explored the retention of self-identity in dementia and its potential use for the individualization of care. The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of role-identity-based treatment for persons with dementia. We recruited a total of 93 elderly persons with dementia (mean Mini-Mental State Exam score = 10.