Caregivers provide support to someone who needs assistance through an illness or the last phase of life. Caregivers can be professional or informal providers (such as friends and/or family related to the individual needing care). Being a caregiver requires a commitment of time, energy, and support. For the professional or unpaid caregiver, the experience can be immensely rewarding and gratifying. It can also be filled with frustration, challenges, and physical and mental stress. When the caregiver is providing assistance to someone at the end of life, the experience may also be filled with mixed emotions, and times of reflection, for both the dying person and the caregiver (American Hospice Foundation, 2013).
In the final stages of a terminal or irreversible illness, care priorities shift. Instead of focusing on curative measures, the focus usually changes to palliative care for the relief of pain, symptoms, and emotional stress. One of the primary roles of any caregiver during the final months, weeks, or days of a life is ensuring that the individual receives quality care in all its aspects. Anticipating the demands of end-of-life caregiving can shift the journey to one in which support focuses on acceptance and healing (Helpguide.org, 2013).