Older Adults' Self-Care and Family Caregiver Contribution in Multiple Chronic Conditions: A Dyadic Qualitative Study.

The older adults were in a stable phase of chronic conditions, so findings may not apply to younger people or those with acute or rapidly changing illness. The study was done in Italy, where the healthcare system and familistic caregiving culture may shape dyadic arrangements differently from other countries. The same research assistant interviewed both members of each dyad on the same day, which could introduce interviewer bias despite an interview guide and instructions not to share information. Three different research assistants conducted interviews, and different interviewers may elicit different responses. Some interviews were short, with a mean duration of 17 minutes, which may have limited depth of individual responses. No member checking was done, so participants did not review the analysis. The study could not examine whether kinship roles or gender influenced management, and it cannot estimate how common the patterns are.

The authors declared no conflicts of interest. Funding came from the Centre of Excellence for Nursing Scholarship (CECRI).

Do not read these themes as proof that assessing or mediating dyadic roles improves health outcomes. The study described experiences in 34 Italian dyads and did not test an intervention.