'I really feel I've let him down': supporting family carers during long-term care placement for elders.

This paper considers placing a relative in a nursing home from a carer's perspective. A largely structured, interviewer-administered, questionnaire survey was conducted with 48 carers in the United Kingdom and 54 carers in the United States of America. While the data highlight differences between the two countries, shared experiences emerge which suggest that carers often have to make difficult decisions without adequate support. Implications for practice are considered. The need to develop more robust support mechanisms is stressed.