The crew here at SCS spends a considerable amount of time talking about, researching and reviewing any information we can find to help us better understand the senior care decision journey.
Understanding the path that older adults and their families take helps us to identify the pain points along the way. We then create content for those intersections. While we feel like we know it well, we also know the market zigs and zags and we need to move with it.
Our friends at Caring.com hosted a webinar a few weeks back that we thought you would find interesting, Mapping the Caregiver Journey: Insights from the Caring.com 2015 Survey.
So pop the cork on your favorite bottle of red (do it for your heart) or curl up with a cup of Pumpkin Spice Latte (we recommend an extra shot of caramel), and follow along…
Caregiver Insight: What We Know About Caregivers in 2015
Caring.com’s survey was of people who visited their site, called their help line or were referred to them from a partner sites such as AARP or ALFA.
Here’s what their survey revealed. While some information will come as no surprise, other data might just be new to you:
- Caregiving duties are still falling on the chicks in the family, fellas. Our friends at Caring.com found 74% of caregivers were women and 58% of them were between the ages of 50 and 70.
- 41% of caregivers were caring for a parent and 31% for a spouse.
- 64% of those receiving care were 80 years of age or older.
- 63% of care recipients had Alzheimer’s disease or some form of dementia. 50% were experiencing general age-related decline.
The Hands-On Support Caregivers Provide
What caregivers provide assistance with is nothing new, but seeing the numbers below in black and white might provoke some discussion around your water cooler like it did ours…
IADLs lead the list:
- Grocery shopping and errands – 82%
- Going along on medical appointments – 82%
- Assistance managing finances – 81%
- Transportation – 77%
- Meal preparation – 67%
- Medication tracking – 67%
- Housekeeping – 61%
What’s interesting is the number of family caregivers helping with ADLs is under 50%.
ADL assistance performed by caregivers:
- Bathing – 42%
- Dressing – 42%
- Toileting – 29%
- Feeding – 27%
Is that the tipping point for families?
When an aging parent needs help bathing and dressing, is that when they call in the experts or make a move to a senior living community?
We know ADLs are activities older adults are often able to perform on their own longer, but is it more than that?
It sure looks like it.
The idea that their daughter or daughter-in-lawn has to bathe and dress them might just be too much for a senior. Ditto for the adult child.
Other Interesting Caregiver Nuggets
- 39% spend 30 hours a week (or more) caring for their loved one
- 19% spent between 11 and 19 hours a week
- 35% of caregivers continued to work
- 71% said caregiving had negatively impacted their work situation
Alzheimer’s caregivers struggle the most.
No surprise for anyone who has worked with Alzheimer’s residents right? 42% of Alzheimer’s caregivers spent 30 hours over more on caregiving versus 31% for non-Alzheimer’s caregivers. 75% of Alzheimer’s caregivers said caregiving impacted their work situation versus 63% for non-Alzheimer’s caregivers.
Where They Moved From…
For our senior living marketing teams, knowing where the majority of people are moving from is good information to know. It’s also great insight to have when you are mapping your content.
(Insert Steve Harvey voice here…)
“Survey said…”
- 74% moved from their private home
- 16% from another senior living community (YIKES!!!)
- 10% from a relative’s home
- 42% of people had lived in that situation from 1 – 3 years.
- Only 20% had lived there for more than 3 years.
What Prompted the Move
More good content marketing juice…
- 58% said was a medical condition or diagnosis prompted the move
- 27% said it was due to the caregivers needs
- 20% said living alone had gotten to be too difficult
Only 10% of those surveyed said the move was due to the death of a spouse.
The Decision Making Timeframe
This is where you can begin to really understand the value of content marketing and lead nurturing in senior living.
- 35% of families took 1-6 months to make a decision
- 17% took 6 months to a year
- 17% took longer than a year
Only 31% made the decision in a month or less.
So if you aren’t nurturing the lead during this long sales cycle, chances are someone else is.
Also of interest? Only 40% of families knew about the community before they started their search. That illustrates the importance of optimizing your website so the 60% who didn’t know about you can find you!
Good stuff right? Visit Caring.com to review the full survey…
Stuck on how to get started with your senior care content or need a top notch senior living writer? Shoot us a note! Our capable crew is the best in the business. We’ll be happy to help!