Who cares for young carers?

BMJ 1994;308:733-734 (19 March)

Editorials

Who cares for young carers?

How much do we know of young carers - that is, children under18 who provide primary care for sick, disabled, or elderly relativesin the home, usually their own parents?¹ Meredith suggestedthat health professionals have failed to identify such childrenand have shown interest in them only when the possibility ofpsychological or physical disorders has been raised.²

Small studies have suggested that there are at least 10 000young carers in Britain.^3,4 Recent research has, however, rejectedthe usefulness of such data, concentrating instead on the qualitativeimpact that caring may have on a child's health, psychosocialdevelopment, and opportunities.*RF 5-7*

A substantial obstacle to addressing the needs and concernsof young carers has been a lack of awareness of their existence.Providers of services - whether health, education, or socialservices - have consistently failed to identify young carers.As one young carer said, "You can't . . . [Full text of this article]

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