Il caregiver come cure giver : nuove soggettività di cura nella cronicità delle demenze

Population ageing and the rise of dementia are shifting Italy's longtermcare landscape from acute medicine to continuous assistance. Through 34 indepth interviews (21 family caregivers, 13 healthcare professionals) conducted in Bologna, this qualitative study examines how relatives negotiate care pathways for persons with Alzheimer's disease. Content analysis shows that caregivers perform body work, emotional labour, bureaucratic articulation and medication management, integrating domestic life with clinical requirements. These hybrid practices blur the canonical care/cure divide and generate a new subjectivity the "curegiver" whose lay expertise enables continuity of treatment yet remains socially invisible and gendered. The article argues that acknowledging curegivers as coproducers of health care is vital for equitable, integrated longtermcare policies and for reducing the hidden burdens currently shouldered by families. [Publisher's text]