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A serious illness or injury to a family member is more than a medical crisis. It’s a health shock that triggers a ripple effect, forcing families to make difficult trade-offs with their time and money.

That’s what we found in our recent study, the first of its kind to show what happens to family finances, work and chores while a partner has a major illness or injury.

We show the effects of such health shocks extend far beyond the person who’s sick. A serious illness or injury is a shared family event that demands a significant and difficult re-allocation of time, money and emotional energy.

For instance, partners take on more household chores and cut back their work hours. Medical costs rise. And families go without holidays, alcohol or other discretionary spending.

Understanding these dynamics is the first step toward building better support systems for the thousands of Australian families who face this reality every year.

What we did

We used two decades of data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey to show how more than 2,000 Australian couples cope with a partner’s health shock. This could be something like a serious workplace accident or a cancer diagnosis.

We tracked work hours, time spent on household chores and care giving, and spending habits before and after the event.

We used data spanning about 22 years. This long-term view allowed us to see how households reacted to the event and whether they could return to their pre-shock lives.

By looking at couples where one person had a serious illness or injury, while the other remained healthy, we could isolate and measure the impact of this event on the entire household.

What we found

When a serious illness or injury strikes, the ill person cut back their hours of paid work, as you’d expect.

However, the healthy partner did not increase their paid work hours to offset the income loss. In fact, their work hours declined slightly.

The healthy partner spent 33% more time on caregiving and 5% more on home chores such as cooking and cleaning.

In other words, the initial family response is not to bring in more money, but to reallocate time to meet new needs at home.

Financially, households re-prioritised to cope. Medical expenses increased by more than 13% in the first year. To cover these new costs, families cut back on discretionary spending, particularly on things such as holidays and alcohol.

Household income only dropped modestly, especially if people could take paid sick leave. But the proportion of individuals reporting financial stress rose by 10%.

This happens because the decline in income is paired with a significant increase in non-negotiable costs, such as medical expenses and higher utility bills from spending more time at home.

How this compares

Our study is the first to use long-term household data to analyse the effects of a health shock on both the ill person and their partner across multiple areas – including employment, household expenditures and time use.

We also suggest Australia’s relatively generous worker’s compensation, sick leave and carers entitlements have cushioned families. Our study shows these likely meant the sick person and their partner were less likely to quit work compared to those in similar situations in other countries without similar support.

And while we showed the Australian male partners of ill women significantly increased time spent caregiving or doing chores, their British counterparts didn’t put in as many extra hours in a similar situation.

What are the implications?

Our research highlights the often overlooked role of the healthy partner as a “shock absorber”, whose unpaid labour is essential for a family’s recovery.

This suggests any social security system aimed at helping those with disabilities or illnesses should also consider the financial and personal burden on caregivers.

The increase in financial stress among affected households, despite existing support systems, indicates current social security programs may not fully cover the needs and costs associated with a major illness or injury.

The findings also highlight the importance of paid leave entitlements for caregivers, which is crucial for household financial stability, particularly for low-income families.

Flexible working arrangements – such as flexible working hours, working from home or a shorter work week – would also help caregivers look after their loved ones.

This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit, independent news organization bringing you facts and trustworthy analysis to help you make sense of our complex world. It was written by: Yuting Zhang, The University of Melbourne and Federico Zilio, The University of Melbourne

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Yuting Zhang has received funding from the Australian Research Council, Department of Veterans' Affairs, the Victorian Department of Health, National Health and Medical Research Council, and Eastern Melbourne Primary Health Network. In the past, Professor Zhang has received funding from several US institutes including the US National Institutes of Health, Commonwealth fund, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Federico Zilio does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.