Families

Caring for sick strains families

The Statistics Canada General Social Survey finds that 2.8 million Canadian adults provided informal care for someone with long-term health or physical limitations in 1996. Nearly half of these people reported that these efforts restricted their social life and cost them extra money. Nearly a third reported changes in sleep patterns. Meanwhile, 27% of women and 12% of men reported adverse impacts on their health. CMAJ 2000:162(1);98.

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