Wellbeing of Family Carers of Adults With Intellectual Disabilities During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the UK: Longitudinal Study.
Paul A Thompson, Eleanor Summers, Sue Caton and 10 others
PMID 39717989WHAT IT FOUND
Carers of adults with intellectual disabilities reported slightly better wellbeing and less health impact from caring as pandemic restrictions eased.
However, carers of those with profound disabilities or poor mental health consistently faced greater burdens, highlighting a need for targeted support.
Key findings
01Family carer wellbeing increased slightly across the four study waves, while the impact of caring on their health decreased.
02Caring for a person with profound and multiple intellectual disabilities or poor mental health was associated with a greater impact of caring on the carer's own health.
03Carers of people living in the family home reported a higher impact of caring on their health compared to those whose relative lived in residential accommodation.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
There were no pre-pandemic baseline measurements, so it is unclear if the observed improvements returned carers to their normal levels or if they remained worse off than before 2020. The study used a convenience sample, which was predominantly White and may have excluded carers who were most distressed or less digitally literate. A considerable amount of data (44%) was missing for the wellbeing outcome, requiring sensitivity analyses that altered some findings. Demographic data about the carers themselves (age, gender, relationship) were not collected.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The study was funded by UK Research and Innovation (Medical Research Council).
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that the general improvement in carer wellbeing applies to all families. The study explicitly found that carers of individuals with profound and multiple intellectual disabilities, and those caring for relatives at home, continued to experience significantly higher impacts on their own health, regardless of the easing of restrictions.