ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION@#There is an increasing reliance on informal caregivers to continue the care of patients after discharge. This is a huge responsibility for caregivers and some may feel unprepared for the role. Without adequate support and understanding regarding their needs, patient care may be impeded. This study aimed to identify the needs valued by caregivers and if there was agreement between acute care nurses and caregivers in the perception of whether caregiver needs were being met.@*METHODS@#We conducted face-to-face interviews with 100 pairs of acute care nurses and caregivers. Participants were recruited from inpatient wards through convenience sampling. Questionnaires included demographic data of nurses and caregivers, patients' activities of daily living, and perception of caregiver needs being met in six domains of care. Independent t-test was used to compare mean values in each domain, and intraclass correlation coefficient was used to compare agreement in perception.@*RESULTS@#Caregivers valued reassurance the most. Three domains of care needs showed significant differences in perception of caregiver needs being met:reassurance (p = 0.002), honesty and timeliness (p = 0.008), and kindness and genuine care (p = 0.026). There was poor agreement in all six domains of caregiver needs being met between nurses and caregivers.@*CONCLUSION@#Although caregivers valued reassurance the most, there was poor agreement between acute care nurses and caregivers in the perception of caregiver needs being met. Hence, more attention should be paid to the caregiver's needs. Further studies can examine reasons for unmet caregiver needs and interventions to improve support for them.
ABSTRACT
Objective To assess the caregiver's needs of patients with breast cancer and their related factors. Methods By purposive sampling,caregivers of hospitalized patients with breast cancer were recruited and completed the Comprehensive Needs Assessment Tool for Cancer Caregivers(CNAT-C),9 items Patient Health Questionnaire(PHQ-9),Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7(GAD-7)to assess their demographic characteristics,needs,depression and anxiety. Results A total of 82 caregivers completed the questionnaires.The most unmet need was health-care staff,followed by information,hospital facilities and services, practical support, family/social support, health and psychological problems and religious/spiritual support.The domain with the highest prevalence of unmet needs was healthcare staff(69.5%,57/82),followed by information/education(48.8%,40/82).The score of domains of health and psychological problems,hospital facilities and services was(6.42±5.73),(10.52±4.84)points in female caregivers,and (2.84±2.52),(7.41±5.39)points in male caregivers,there was significant difference(t=2.83,2.47,P<0.01 or 0.05). Caregivers with high school or lower education reported higher needs in health staff domain than caregivers with higher education: (19.70 ± 5.72) points vs. (16.77 ± 7.38) points, t=2.02, P=0.046. Caregivers who were unmarried had higher needs in domain of religious/spiritual support than married caregivers:(2.86±2.27)points vs.(1.56±0.18)points,t=2.99,P=0.004.Caregivers who were religious had higher needs in domain of religious/spiritual support than caregivers who were not:(2.63±1.92)points vs. (0.93 ± 0.61) points, t=2.78, P=0.007). Caregivers who were from rural area reported higher needs in domain of practical support than those from city: (6.48 ± 4.82) points vs. (4.19 ± 1.35) points, t=2.00, P=0.049. The total score of caregiver needs was positively correlated with depression (r =0.44, P < 0.01), anxiety(r=0.41,P<0.01),in addition to the medical staff and the other dimensions of depression(r=0.28-0.46, P < 0.05), anxiety (r=0.22-0.51, P < 0.05) were positively correlated. Conclusions The most unmet needs of caregivers of patients with breast cancer were health-care staff, followed by information, and hospital facilities and services. More attention should be paid on caregivers who were female, with lower education,unmarried,religious,from rural area and reported depression and anxiety.