Barriers to Communication With a Healthcare Provider and Health Literacy About Incontinence Among Informal Caregivers of Individuals With Dementia.
Jean Mullins, Donna Z Bliss, Sharon Rolnick and 2 others
PMID 27607750WHAT IT FOUND
Caregivers of people with dementia described different barriers to discussing incontinence with providers: daughters feared invading privacy, wives tried to cope alone, husbands lacked knowledge, and friends or extended family were treated as outsiders.
Key findings
01Daughter caregivers described emotional barriers tied to role reversal and privacy, and wanted time to speak with providers about incontinence separately from their parent.
02Spouse caregivers faced different barriers: wives delayed asking providers until managing leakage became inadequate, while husbands said providers not raising incontinence was a barrier.
03Extended family and friend caregivers said providers did not ask them about incontinence, and Hispanic caregivers reported language barriers.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Caregivers may not have been fully candid because Alzheimer's disease and incontinence are sensitive topics. The analysis focused on communication with healthcare providers, so other barriers to health literacy may not have been captured. The views of son caregivers were not evaluated. The supplied article text does not state the total number of caregivers, so the breadth of the themes is unclear.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read these caregiver themes as evidence that asking providers about incontinence or giving Spanish materials improves care. The study reported what caregivers said about barriers; it did not test an intervention or measure patient or caregiver outcomes.