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Profile of a Caregiver
Caregiver Diversity
7 million people are informal caregivers.
Caregivers are family members or friends who care for loved ones, living at home, who are ill or have disabilities.
Minority family members involved in caregiving is higher than those in non-minority families, particularly among adult children.
A caregiver profile shows that:
- Spouses account for 28% of caregivers of white elders
- 20% of caregivers are Hispanic Americans
- More than 52% of Hispanic Americans receive care from adult children
- Smaller proportions of African American and white elders receive care from their adult children.
- 15% of caregivers of African Americans
- 66% of African American caregivers are employed full or part time.
- African Americans are most likely to receive care from non-relatives.
- African Americans find themselves “sandwiched” between caring for an older person and a younger person and caring for more than one older person.
- African American caregivers are also more likely to live with the care recipient and spend an average of 20 hours per week providing care.
- An Asian American/Pacific Islander caregiver is a 39 year-old female who works either full or part-time. This group is least likely to seek professional assistance for coping with the stress of caregiving.
- 7% of grandparents are sole caregiver of grandchildren.
- Native American caregivers assist elders who are chronically ill or have disabilities.
