Table 1.
Full description of the cohort
| Variable | N (%) | Variable | N (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Female sex | 62 (62) | ||
| Marital status | Family supporta | 92 (92) | |
| Widowed | 46 (52) | Children/children-in-law | 102 (71) |
| Married | 26 (30) | Spouse/partner | 21 (15) |
| Single | 9 (10) | Niece/nephew | 13 (9) |
| Divorced/separated | 7 (8) | Other | 7 (5) |
| Missing data | 12 | ||
| Cognitive diagnoses | Type of support provided | ||
| Cognitive impairmentb | 20 (42) | Shopping | 62 (24) |
| Diagnosis of dementia AND/OR cognitive enhancers | 55 (55) | Visiting/social | 61 (23) |
| Subtype recorded (n=52) | Cleaning | 54 (21) | |
| Alzheimer's disease | 17 (33) | Food preparation | 40 (15) |
| Vascular dementia | 12 (25) | Phone calls | 22 (8) |
| Lewy body disease/Parkinson's disease-associated | 4 (8) | Personal hygiene | 11 (4) |
| Not specified | 15 (29) | Dressing | 9 (3) |
| Other | 4 (2) | ||
| Missing data | 13 | ||
| Past medical history | Frequency of support | ||
| Alcohol excess | 10 (10) | Four times/day | 5 (7) |
| Falls | 63 (63) | Overnight | 6 (8) |
| Depression | 14 (14) | Daily | 40 (57) |
| Recent previous admissions | 37 (37) | Weekly | 12 (17) |
| Prescribing | Monthly | 3 (4) | |
| Regular prescriptions | Median of 8 [range 0–21] | Missing data | 32 |
| Anti-psychotic use | 17 (17) | ||
| Cognitive enhancers | 28 (28) | ||
| Functional status | State package of care | 73 (73) | |
| Mobility | Frequency | ||
| Zimmer frame | 35 (35) | 7 days/week | 68 (93) |
| Stick | 27 (27) | Four times/day | 28 (38) |
| Unaided | 27 (27) | Three times/day | 15 (21) |
| Other | 11 (11) | Twice daily | 18 (25) |
| Continence | Once daily | 9 (12) | |
| Fully continent | 57 (62) | Other | 3 (4) |
| Incontinent of urine | 31 (33) | Nature of support | |
| Doubly incontinent | 4 (4) | Personal hygiene | 60 (82) |
| Missing data | 8 | Medication prompting | 47 (64) |
| Use of continence aids | Meal preparation | 52 (71) | |
| Continence pads | 37 (40) | ||
| Catheter | 10 (11) | ||
| Social situation | Informal/unpaid support | ||
| Living arrangements | Friend | 10 (16) | |
| Lives alone | 67 (67) | Neighbour | 6 (10) |
| Lives with spouse/partner | 25 (25) | Other | 2 (3) |
| Lives with son/daughter | 8 (8) | Missing data | 39 |
| Housebound | 14 (16) | ||
| Missing data | 12 | ||
| Type of property | Other formal services | 14 (25) | |
| House | 37 (42) | Day centre | 7 |
| Flat | 24 (27) | Other (inc private carers) | 7 |
| Bungalow | 13 (15) | Missing data | 44 |
| Sheltered accommodation | 11 (12) | ||
| Other | 4 (4) |
Total sample is 100 therefore where data are complete, n = %. Where n is not equal to the % this represents data which were not available or not applicable.
aA total of 143 individuals were supporting 92 individuals; percentage represents proportion with at least one person in that category of relationship.
bNot possible to have diagnosis of dementia and cognitive impairment simultaneously so cognitive impairment result based on proportion without dementia.