Grieves and struggles of family caregivers providing care for bedridden elderly patients affected by chronic degenerative diseases.
Joice Soares Campos, Anna Cláudia Yokoyama Dos Anjos, Sebastião Benício da Costa Neto and 1 others
PMID 34214286WHAT IT FOUND
Women caring for bedridden elders described grief for the person before illness, fear of future death, and exhaustion from night checks, home changes, and learning care tasks without training.
Key findings
01Caregivers described grief for the loss of the person before illness and, more discreetly, grief for the patient’s anticipated death.
02Overnight care and checking whether the patient was choking were described as sources of fatigue.
03Some caregivers felt insecure about care tasks and feared needing to manage a breathing tube because they had no practice.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Only ten women were interviewed, all from one public home care service, so the findings may not represent other caregivers. The study captured experiences at one point in time, so it cannot show how grief, fatigue, or skills change during care. The service list included 30 people, but eligibility was not fully known, so the target population is uncertain. All participants were women, although the study did not intend this, so male caregivers are not represented. Some interviews had companions present, which could shape what was said, although no embarrassment was noted.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read these themes as proof that caregiver support reduces grief or fatigue. The study reported experiences from ten women in one home care service and measured no outcomes.