訪問看護ステーションにおける別居介護者支援の現状

Current Status of Support for Caregivers Living apart from Their Care Recipients at Visiting Nursing Stations

要旨

　目的：訪問看護ステーションにおける別居介護者支援の現状を把握し，訪問看護師による支援ニーズの高い別居介護事例の特徴を明らかにすることを目的とした．

　方法：全国の訪問看護ステーション1,000事業所を対象に無記名自記式質問紙調査を行い，別居介護事例を収集した．各項目の記述統計量の算出および，別居介護者の通う距離別にχ²検定を行った．

　結果：228事業所から回答が得られ（回収率22.8％），402事例を分析した．事例の世帯状況は単独世帯が74.4％で，要介護3以下が81.5％を占めた．別居介護者は50〜60歳代が71.4％，続柄は子どもが81.6％であった．別居介護者の通う距離との関係で有意差があったのは，高齢者の要介護度と経済状況，別居介護者の性別と訪問頻度であった．

　結論：別居介護の特徴を踏まえた効果的な支援方法について検討することが必要である．

　Purpose: The purpose of this study was to understand the current status of support available for caregivers living apart from their care recipients at visiting nursing stations, and to characterize the cases of these caregivers with high needs for support through home visiting nursing.

　Methods: An anonymous self-administered questionnaire survey was conducted of personnel at 1,000 visiting nursing stations throughout Japan, to collect data from caregivers living apart from their care recipients. Descriptive statistics were calculated for each item, and the χ² test was used to assess the factors associated with the distance traveled by the caregivers.

　Results: Responses to the questionnaire were received from 228 visiting nursing stations (response rate, 22.8%), and 402 cases were analyzed. Of these, 74.4% were single-person households and the care level was 3 or lower in 81.5% of cases. Of the caregivers, 71.4% were in their 50s or 60s, and 81.6% were children of the care recipients. The distance traveled by the caregivers was significantly associated with the “care level of the elderly care recipients”, “economic status”, “caregivers' sex”, and the “visit frequency”.

　Conclusion: It is necessary to consider how to effectively provide support to caregivers living apart from their care recipients, based on the characteristics of individual cases.