A Phenomenological-Hermeneutic Study Exploring Caring Responsibility for a Chronically Ill, Older Parent with Frailty

Aim: To provide lifeworld insights into experiences of adult children with caring responsibility for an 80+-year-old chronically ill parent with frailty.
Background: Informal care is common in Nordic welfare countries; however, little is known about adult children’s experience of caring responsibility in this setting.
Design: A phenomenological-hermeneutic study based on Reflective Lifeworld Research.
Methods: Diaries and semi-structured interviews with 12 adult children.
Results: Caring responsibility is identified as ‘a condition of life, filled with uncertainty.’ Three constituents contribute to this phenomenon: 1) balancing love, duty and reciprocity, 2) being the parent’s advocate and manager and 3) experiencing concerns and bodily strain.
Conclusion: Adult children work hard to provide care and enhance the well-being of their parent. Heidegger’s concept ¨Fürsorge’ may help us understand how by showing how caring responsibility means balancing different roles vis-à-vis the parent, one’s own life and the health and social systems. Caring responsibility changes the relationship between parent and child.