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Kwon and Tae: The Experience of Adult Korean Children Caring for Parents Institutionalized with Dementia
Original Article

Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing 2014; 44(1): 41-54.

Published online: 28 February 2014

DOI: https://doi.org/10.4040/jkan.2014.44.1.41

The Experience of Adult Korean Children Caring for Parents Institutionalized with Dementia

Suhye Kwon, Young-Sook Tae

College of Nursing, Kosin University, Busan, Korea.

Address reprint requests to: Tae, Young-Sook. College of Nursing, Kosin University, 262 Gamcheon-ro, Seo-gu, Busan 602-702, Korea. Tel: +82-51-990-6446, Fax: +82-51-990-3031, taehope@kosin.ac.kr

Received 19 August 2013       Revised 3 September 2013       Accepted 29 December 2013

© 2014 Korean Society of Nursing Science

(open-access):

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution NoDerivs License. (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/) If the original work is properly cited and retained without any modification or reproduction, it can be used and re-distributed in any format and medium.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of the study was to explore and describe the experience of adult Korean children who are caregivers for parents institutionalized with dementia.

Methods

Participants were fourteen adult children caregivers of elders institutionalized with dementia. Data were collected through in-depth unstructured interviews with individual participants from August to November, 2012. Theoretical sampling was used to the point of theoretical saturation. Data were analyzed using Strauss and Corbin's Grounded Theory Method.

Results

From open coding, 67 concepts, 29 sub-categories, and 14 categories were identified. Analysis revealed that the core category of the experience of adult children caring for their parents institutionalized with dementia was 'enduring the role of a prop' consisting of four phases: initial turmoil, exploration, role adjustment, and acclimation. To manage the role of a prop, participants utilized various action/interactional strategies such as overcoming the unfamiliarity, overseeing the nursing home care, and counterbalancing the caring roles. As a result, participants experienced ambivalence towards the existence of parents with dementia, changes in family relationships, altered viewpoint towards nursing homes, and restructuring of life.

Conclusion

In-depth understanding of the experience will guide nurses to promote effective interventions in order to better support the Korean family caregivers of parents institutionalized with dementia.

Keywords: Nursing home, Institutionalization, Dementia, Adult children, Family caregivers

Figures and Tables

Figure 1
Theoretical framework for enduring the role of a prop.
jkan-44-41-g001
Table 1
Relationships among Categories using Paradigm Model
jkan-44-41-i001

Notes

This manuscript is a revision of the first author's doctoral dissertation from Kosin University.

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