Navigating multiple and complex systems of care and support with ageing family carers from multicultural backgrounds in Australia

<p>Ageing family caregivers of family members with disability must navigate complex social care systems within a single household for long-term and end-of-life transitions. This is particularly challenging for migrants from culturally and racially marginalised (CaRM) backgrounds, given their historical exclusion from developing disability and aged care support systems. Limited research exists on the lived experiences of new and second-generation CaRM communities providing informal care to family members with disabilities, globally and in Australia. This paper highlights the challenges faced by CaRM families navigating racial, ethnic, and immigration politics while seeking access to appropriate disability and ageing social care supports. The findings reveal that Many CaRM families face isolation and difficulty accessing needed support due to misconceptions about their strong local networks. Moreover, the significance of place, especially in low-resource urban areas, poses challenges for ageing family primary caregivers managing a dual long-term care arrangement, leading to uncertainties about their future.</p> <p><br></p> <p>Points of interest</p> <ul> <li>Families in culturally and racially marginalised (CaRM) communities experience significant difficulties in seeking help for disability care changes (or transitions) when primary caregivers are ageing;</li> <li>Disability and ageing support systems in Australia often wrongly assume that CaRM families have strong support networks that help to access formal care and support;</li> <li>Parents need long term support for their adult child with a disability, but want to avoid giving their other adult children without disability care responsibilities after their own death;</li> <li>Many families feel isolated and alone because of language barriers, and cultural exclusion. This makes it very difficult to seek the right care and support for both the ageing carers and family members with disability;</li> <li>Many factors affect immigrant ageing family caregivers in seeking suitable care transition options for family members with disability. These include property ownership, caregiver age, personal health, partner support, and other adult children in the family;</li> <li>Therefore, families need different social care systems to plan support changes (a) short term for the ageing family caregiver, and (b) long-term for the family member with disability, into end-of-life stages.</li> </ul><p></p>