The effectiveness of a caregiver support programme to address the needs of primary caregivers of stroke patients in a low socio economic community

[摘要] Stroke is a difficult condition to manage because of the complex nature of its effects.Caregivers are therefore, crucial in providing ongoing care for the stroke patient at home.Caregivers experience considerable strain during caregiving, as their needs are oftenoverlooked because therapeutic management tends to focus mainly on the stroke patient. Inthird world countries like South Africa, there are currently no research studies found describingan optimum support intervention which addresses the caregivers' needs and reduces theirstrain levels.ObjectiveTo determine the effectiveness of a caregiver support intervention programme (CSIP) that wasdeveloped to address the expressed needs identified by the primary caregiver of the strokepatient in the Bishop Lavis community.MethodA prospective and descriptive qualitative study design was used to evaluate the effectivenessof the CSIP. A total of 29 caregivers participated in three CSIPs, which were implemented overfive sessions each. The Barthel Index was used to measure the functional level of each strokepatient. The needs of stroke caregivers were determined by 15 semi-structured interviews, untildata saturation was reached. The Caregiver Strain Index was completed before and afterimplementation of the CSIP, in order to measure whether the intervention programme had beeneffective in reducing the caregivers' level of strain. Written or verbal feedback forms was alsocompleted by the caregivers after each of the five intervention sessions. Results were analysedusing repeated measures ANOVA and descriptive qualitative analysis.ResultsThe qualitative results of this study suggest that the CSIP was effective in addressing mainlythe physical needs, as well as the emotional, educational and socio-economic needs of theprimary caregivers. The CSIP was also effective in reducing caregiver strain in 61.5% of thesample (N=13). However, an additional finding of this study was the personal and logisticalbarriers identified which limited the caregivers' attendance of the sessions.ConclusionThe CSIP was effective in addressing the physical, emotional, socio-economic and educationalneeds of the primary caregiver. In addition, the results also verified that the CSIP was effectivein reducing caregiver strain in the majority of the caregivers, despite a small sample size. Thebarriers identified which affected the caregivers' attendance, need to be taken intoconsideration when planning future intervention programmes for caregivers in poor socioeconomiccommunities. Due to the low attendance rate by the caregivers, a larger sample sizeis recommended to accommodate for the high drop-out rates in such a population.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University