The impact of an educational intervention in caregiving outcomes in Jordanian caregivers of patients receiving hemodialysis: A single group pre-and-post test.
Eman Khamis Alnazly
PMID 31406816WHAT IT FOUND
After a dialysis education session, caregivers reported their lives had changed for the better two weeks later.
Before the session, burden was moderate. With no control group, the change may be short-term or due to other factors.
Key findings
01Two weeks after the session, caregivers' outcome questionnaire scores were higher than before, and the paper reports the paired comparisons were significant at p <= 0.05.
02Before the education session, caregivers rated overall burden as moderate, and they reported high difficulty with dietary needs, finding another caregiver and managing finances.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
There was no control group, so the study cannot show that the education caused the improvement; time, expectation or other factors could explain the change. Outcomes were measured only two weeks after the session, so the study does not show lasting benefit. The sample was unpaid family caregivers of hemodialysis patients in Jordan, so the findings may not apply to caregivers of people with short-term conditions or other settings. The education covered many topics at once, including diet, fistula care, blood pressure monitoring, medication, hygiene, bleeding precautions, fall prevention and resources, so the study cannot identify which component mattered. The burden scale included a dietary needs item that the paper says was not included in the total mean analysis.
Declared interests
The author states the study was not supported by any grant and there is no conflict of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that the education session caused the improvement. The study had no control group, used a single group before and after design, and measured outcomes only two weeks later, so expectation, time or other changes cannot be ruled out. The session also taught many topics at once, so the study cannot show which topic mattered.