Awareness of Family Caregiver Resources and Alignment with Traditional Culture in a Midwest Tribal Nation in the United States

Family caregivers helping adults with functional needs, including older adults, can benefit from training, support groups, and other services. However, these resources are often underutilized. Caregiving is particularly common in Indigenous communities, but little is known about how Indigenous caregivers consider utilization of supportive resources. To guide efforts to increase utilization, this study sought to describe awareness and attitudes regarding caregiver services within a Midwest Tribal Nation in the United States. Working within a tribally-led, community-based participatory research framework, an online survey was offered to all Tribal members and affiliates aged ≥ 18 years, covering caregiver status, resource awareness and source of information, and beliefs about service use alignment with traditional cultural values. We examined associations between selected factors and awareness. Participants (N = 481) had a mean age of 52.78 (16.6) years, were primarily female (75.5%), and resided both on and off reservation. Almost half (n = 203; 43%) were current caregivers, of whom the majority helped an older adult (n = 173; 83.6%) and/or someone with memory loss (n = 127; 61.4%). Current caregivers, older adults, and reservation residents reported the highest levels of awareness. A significant proportion of respondents (17%) indicated no awareness of any of the 7 resources queried. Primary sources of information for caregivers included independent research and social networks; for non-caregivers, Tribal communications were cited most frequently. Perceptions of alignment of resource use with traditional culture varied by service. Findings add to our understanding of Indigenous family caregiving and can inform public outreach and interventions to increase use of caregiver services.