{"id":14778,"date":"2013-05-28T16:18:28","date_gmt":"2013-05-28T20:18:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pmedicine.org\/epatients\/?p=14778"},"modified":"2013-05-28T16:20:35","modified_gmt":"2013-05-28T20:20:35","slug":"caregivers-please-share-your-stories","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/participatorymedicine.org\/epatients\/2013\/05\/caregivers-please-share-your-stories.html","title":{"rendered":"Caregivers, please share your stories"},"content":{"rendered":"

The\u00a0Pew Research Center<\/a>\u00a0will release a new report about caregivers in June. As we prepare, I’m looking for stories to share with reporters so they can better understand the context for our data. If you have experience caring for a family member, a friend, or a neighbor, either now or in the past, please consider writing a comment below. Links to your own blog or videos are welcome — or feel free to email me directly: sfox (at) pewinternet.org.<\/p>\n

One challenge we face in telling this story is that lots of people don’t think of themselves as caregivers. They are simply helping out, doing what needs to be done. Maybe the role crept up on them, as their parents got older. Maybe the role was thrust upon them, when a neighbor who lives alone fell ill and had nobody else to turn to. That’s why we don’t use the word “caregiver” in our survey questions, but rather ask about activities and relationships.<\/p>\n

Another challenge is that, at first glance, caregiving doesn’t appear to have much to do with the internet. So why focus on this group when tracing the social impact of the internet? Three reasons:<\/p>\n