Assistive Devices and Caregiver Retention in Long-Term Care Institutions

Abstract

Care workers, whose roles frequently involve physically demanding tasks, gain significant benefits from using assistive devices that alleviate physical strain and improve their work environment. Despite these advantages, the relationship between assistive device use and caregivers’ job tenure remains limited. Using propensity score matching (PSM) and data from the Korea Long-Term Care Survey, this study examines differences in caregivers’ job tenure associated with the provision of assistive devices in long-term care institutions. We find that social workers and care assistants in institutions with access to assistive devices have longer job tenure, by 4.7 months and 3.3 months respectively, compared to those in institutions without access to these devices. In contrast, we do not observe a statistically significant change in job tenure for other occupations, such as nurses, nurse assistants, physical/occupational therapists, and non-care staff.