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Recap
Hi everyone! Welcome back, to give you a little recap of my project, I am exploring how cultural and ethical differences influence an individual's caregiving experience and the psychological effects that arise when caring for someone. Through my research, I am hoping to provide insights that help people better understand how their unique cultural and ethical perspectives shape their approach to caregiving. By recognizing these differences, we can begin to create more effective support for caregivers, and improve their well-being and experience.
Current Milestones and Achievements
After a challenging start to data collection, I found a few new ways to get my survey out there. The biggest milestone I achieved was when I reached out to Mia DeMarco. She is the Operating Director of Cornerstone Caregiving in Denver, a business that provides extra help for family caregivers of people with dementia, offering in-home nurses to assist. Mia was able to send out my survey to caregivers who had reached out to her and encourage them to participate. Thanks to her, I received my first three responses, which was a huge step forward. In addition, I was connected with the Senior Director of Bonaventure, a nursing home in Castle Rock. She agreed to put up my flyers (pictured right) and even offered me the opportunity to present my work to the residents and their families. Through this connection, I gained one more response. My last achievement, and one of the biggest, was posting to social media. On sites like NextDoor and Facebook, these posts have gotten a lot of positive attention and feedback but have yet to give me any new response. This is encouraging and I am hoping within the next few weeks there is more to come through this avenue.
Challenges
I started my project in early December, attempting to collect data through nursing homes across Colorado. My hope was they would post my flyers in their facilities showcasing them to visiting relatives and hopefully get some responses. I also reached out to the Alzheimer's Association, an online organization where caregivers can share their experiences, find support, and connect with others going through similar situations. Unfortunately, many nursing homes declined, and the Alzheimer's Association couldn’t assist me. This was a major setback. After a few conversations with my parents and teachers, Mr. McBride and Mrs. Dobos, I came up with a new plan for collecting data. I connected to individuals like Mia DeMarco, an individual in the formal caregiving service and Heather Kreider, the director at Bonaventure. The other biggest thing I did was posting on websites like Nextdoor and Facebook to try to reach more people (pictured to the left). This has gotten me a lot of positive feedback and people have already messaged me individually sharing their experiences and sending the survey out to others. So far this has not gained me any responses but I am hoping with the positive feedback I will get more!
Current Data Collection
The biggest trend that I have noticed, is in the gender of people that have responded to my survey (pictured below). While my sample size is still small, I find it interesting that all of them are women. Historically, women have taken on a larger role in caregiving. This could be due to traditional gender roles, societal expectations, and the nurturing qualities often associated with women. Caregiving is still largely seen as a female responsibility, especially when it comes to family care for aging or ill relatives. Although the responses are limited, this trend might reveal something important about caregiving patterns and the way they impact women.
Interesting Data
One interesting finding from my data so far is the psychological effects reported by those who’ve answered my survey. I listed the 14 most common positive and negative effects of caregiving, and with my limited responses, it’s interesting to see that almost all of them were selected (pictured below). This highlights the complexity of caregiving. Not only the stress, burden, and anxiety it can place on an individual, but also how caregiving can be seen as positive effect, where individuals feel fulfillment and a sense of purpose.
Reflection
This process has been incredibly challenging, but also extremely rewarding. I didn’t expect to feel such disappointment by the lack of responses, and because of that, it took me longer than I thought to pick myself back up. However, getting my first response, was definitely the boost I needed to motivate myself. Not only did it show that someone believed in my idea and project, but they also took the time to help me. These next few weeks will continue to be tough. The best thing I believe I can do for my project is to regularly post online. I am hoping that with persistence, more responses will come in. This whole experience also taught me a lot about myself. In the past, all of my big projects or research have been done with a group, but this time I’ve had to solve a lot of problems on my own. It’s been a mix of personal growth and struggle, but I’m learning how to push through the tough moments. I know that in the end, all this hard work will pay off, no matter the outcome of my project.
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