一位成年男性照護老年父親的心路歷程──一個個案研究

Aging parents care—a case study

老年父母照顧原本是傳統中國孝道的一部份，隨著時代演進與醫學科技的進步，人類壽命增加、以及少子化趨勢，傳統孝道觀念也受到挑戰，包括老年父母照顧責任誰屬？將老年父母送入養護機構的接受度改變，以及養兒未必防老觀念的更迭，然而基本上普遍大眾還是將照顧老年父母視為家庭成員的義務，因此如何善盡照護老年父母的工作？對於長期照顧者而言，其主要挑戰在何處？本研究以一個照護老父近十四年的個案為對象，貼近去了解其在照護工作上的影響、困境與需求。陳義（假名）所面臨的最大壓力在於照顧理念與受照顧人的扞格，照顧工作項目不多、唯心理的壓力較大，也擔心外人怎麼看他；長期照護的結果是心力耗竭、無法擔任正常工作、交友與社交生活嚴重受到影響，需要的是「可以使用」的資源，而不是可看、卻限制門檻很高的協助機制。

Taking care of aging parents used to be a tradition passed on for generations. However， with the advancement of modern technology and medicine， longer life expectancy and lower birth rate， the long-held tradition has been questioned. The main problem lies in “Who is to take on the obligation to care for the elderly parents?” In addition， it seems to be an acceptable option to send the aging parents to the nursing home. Furthermore， raising the children does not guarantee obtaining the life-term ticket to be taken care of for the rest of their life in the parents’ eyes. While， there is no denying that the public still regard it as an obligation to care for the elderly parents. How to take care of the aging parents? What might be the daunting challenge for a long-term caregiver? The study is to explore a care deliver， Chen Yi， who has been dedicated for more than fourteen years to attending to his ageing father. The hard task and the difficulties facing him would be under discussion in here. The major stress might result from the diverse opinions seen from a care-provider and a care-recipient. Is sacrificing all one’s time， strength， career， and social circles to take care of the elderly father a sensible choice? Besides， the available resources offered by the government to help with the infirm seems to be limited to a great extent and the threshold set up seems to be unreachable for those in desperate need.