Abstract. Purpose: This article reports on the fdgs of a study whose purpose was to explore the experienc of regivers of gay and lbian senrs livg
Contents:
EXPERIENC OF RMAL REGIVG AMONG OLR LBIAN AND GAY ADULTS ATRALIA
While many issu are the same for all olr adults and those who re for them, some unique nsiratns arise for lbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenr (LGBTQ+) people alg wh Chosen Fai Affect CaregivgAs you may already know, many LGBTQ+ people form strong “fai of choice” addn to their fai of orig as a way of pg wh possible or actual rejectn by parents, siblgs, and other relativ for beg open about their sexual orientatn or genr inty. Fillg out forms and ntact wh servic)425%State or terrory of rinceAtralian Capal Terrory16%New South Wal425%Queensland319%South Atralia213%Victoria531%Wtern Atralia16%Rintial areaUrban1169%Regnal319%Rural213%Employment statRetired956%Workg744%Receivg home‐reY213%No1488%EdutnHigh school319%Universy1275%Not known16%Participants noted trangement om fay and children om prev marriag due to experienc of homophobic discrimatn and/or rejectn.
For example, Devon (69, gay man, partner) referred to beg creasgly worried about his pacy to re for his ailg partner and noted feelgs of impatience as a rult: ‘I do tend to get a ltle b impatient wh him bee I am worried and he do get a b upset wh me’ exprsed feelg trated when partners were not helpg themselv, such as Phoebe (66, lbian woman, partner) who noted she was ‘badgerg her [partner] when she had a turn’ when she felt her partner ignored warng signs of an impendg heart attack after havg had one prevly. Heterosexism is the privilegg of heterosexualy over all other sexual orientatns and inti; although is often subtle and visible, heterosexism effectively works to create obstacl to achievg full equaly for gays and lbians (Brotman, Ryan, & Meyer, 2006) notable Canadian anizatns n by gay and lbian muny groups are the 519 Communy Centre Toronto and The Centre Vanuver, both of which have highly anized and advanced programs for gay and lbian senrs and their regivers. Yet spe their efforts, polici and practic addrsg issu facg gay and lbian senrs Canada ntue to be margal, particularly wh mastream health and social service this realy, is no surprise to fd that intifitn of and rponsivens to those providg rmal, unpaid regiver support to the senrs is even further removed om the health re agenda.
Usg qualative exploratory terviews wh regivers that were unrtaken between 2002 and 2006, we explored some of the cril them that emerged the terviews, cludg self-inty as a regiver, the impact on regivers of real and anticipated discrimatn faced by gay and lbian senrs the health re system, g out and the role of regivers, and the need for specialized regiver support servic. Rather than nsir the experience of rg for a gay or lbian olr adult, the lerature tends to approach the issue om the perspective of gay and lbian regivers, many of whom, admtedly, re for their gay or lbian partners, iends, or, more rarely, parents (Cantor, Brennan, & Shippy, 2004; Cantor, Shippy, & Brennan, 2002; Coon, 2004; Freriksen, 1999; Hash, 2001; Hash & Cramer, 2003; Moore, 2002; Shippy, Brennan, & Cantor, 2003; Shippy, Cantor, & Brennan, 2004). Apart om those Shippy, Brennan, and Cantor's semal work on HIV regivg experienc among lbian and gay elrs, the dividuals receivg re most of studi on HIV and regivg reprent largely a young adult populatn (generally younger than 50 years old), and th their efulns for unrstandg the experienc of those rg for gay and lbian senrs is limed.