About three-quarters of family caregivers are worried that after they reach old age or pass away, no one will be available to look after a family member with a disability, a survey released yesterday by the Eden Social Welfare Foundation found.
The survey, conducted from May 25 to June 10, asked family caregivers of people with disabilities served by the foundation to select from a list their top concerns for their disabled family members.
Respondents could select more than one option from the list.
While 76.6 percent of respondents were worried there would be no one to take care of their disabled family member following their death or in their old age, 69.7 percent of respondents were worried their family member with a disability would be unable to live independently.
Forty-one percent said they were worried that their family member with a disability would suffer from emotional problems or a disease, while 39.4 percent said they were concerned that their family member would have no job opportunities, the survey showed.
Caregivers could also choose multiple options from a list to express the types of resources they hoped for most in caring for their relative with disabilities, with 57.5 percent of respondents saying that they wanted a channel that would allow them to seek help any time.
This was followed by respite care at 43.1 percent and financial assistance at 41.4 percent.
The survey found that 22.4 percent of caregivers said they hoped for psychological counseling, while 19.5 percent said they wanted training on caregiving skills and 18.4 percent said they wanted caregiving consultation or courses.
The survey, which was commissioned by the foundation and conducted by InsightXplorer, collected 191 valid samples, had a confidence level of 95 percent and a margin of error of 7.09 percent.
More than 1.18 million people in Taiwan, or about one in every 20, have a physical or mental disability, the foundation said, citing Ministry of Health and Welfare statistics.
Many tragedies result from a lack of help-seeking channels, foundation resource development department head Amy Chang (張炎玉) told a news conference at the Taipei NGO House, encouraging people to sympathize with and lend a hand to people with disabilities and their families.
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