When we look into the past at our parents, grandparents, or great-grand parents, long-term care didn't seem to be as big of an issue as it is today. This could be due to the fact that families were able to take care of their loved ones if they lived long enough to need long-term care. Our families have changed a lot over the years, making it more difficult for families to take on the responsibility of care giving. There are many challenges that families face that make it difficult to take care of their loved ones.
In the past, women did not always have to work and were able to care for their parents, or their spouse's parents. Now, in order to survive in today's world, many times both the husband and wife need to work. If the wife is working it makes it very difficult, if not impossible, for her to be the primary caregiver. If she tries to accomplish both, often her work will suffer which can result in substantial financial losses.
In America, there has been a tremendous increase in the number of divorces. Divorce leaves a lot of single-parent families. These single-parent families may face a difficult job raising a family on their own while trying to work a full-time job to support their family. Imagine if they were also providing care to a loved one as well! Not to mention the additional burdens of having more than one-set of parents to care for during their later years. A child from a divorced family may end up having multiples of parents and parents-in-law because of family divorces.
In the past, people had more children than we are having today. It was normal to have three, four, or more children. If a parent needed long-term care, there was a greater chance that at least one of those children could provide care. In today's world we are not having as many children, thereby decreasing the odds that one of them would be available to provide long-term care.
In the past, families usually lived in the same communities, or not far away. If a parent needed long-term care there was usually a family member living nearby that could step in and help out. In today's world, our families are spread out across the country. If Mom and Dad live in California and their children live in Florida and New York, you can see how difficult it would be for the children to participate in the care giving without having to pick up and move and leave behind their current lives.
