Formal Health and Social Services That Directly and Indirectly Benefit Stroke Caregivers: A Scoping Review of Access and Use.
Anna Garnett, Jenny Ploeg, Maureen Markle-Reid and 1 others
PMID 35130749WHAT IT FOUND
Stroke caregivers kept using community services long after discharge, especially homecare, peer support and general practitioners, but often did not use counselling, respite or helplines they valued.
Cost, insurance and poor communication were recurring barriers.
Key findings
01Family caregivers continued to use formal health and social services long after the stroke survivor returned home, with homecare, peer support and general practitioner services used more often than counselling, respite or helplines.
02Caregivers often did not use services they considered important: in one USA study, over half rated counselling, support groups and stress management as important, but only 20% used them.
03Cost and insurance coverage were major barriers to use; higher household income was associated with more outpatient rehabilitation, and lack of coverage or higher service costs hindered caregiver and survivor service use.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Only English-language studies were included, so relevant research in other languages may have been missed. The review included 12 articles, and few studies directly investigated caregivers' service use and access. Many included studies were qualitative or observational rather than trials, so they cannot show that services caused better outcomes. Some samples were small, selected (veterans or one race/ethnicity) or mainly female spouses, so they may not represent all caregivers. Some qualitative studies had limited methodological detail and possible recall bias. The review did not include grey literature, which may have missed emerging evidence.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest and received no financial support.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as proof that respite, counselling or rehabilitation improved caregiver outcomes. The review describes access and use, not tested effects, and many included studies were qualitative or observational.