Caregiver Burdens of Family Members with Alzheimer's Disease.

Alzheimer's disease is a common form of dementia characterized by progressive deterioration of a patient's cognitive abilities and memory. Most individuals that have Alzheimer's disease live and depend on family members for assistance or total care. This descriptive, correlational study examines the relationship between perceived caregiver burden of a family member with Alzheimer's disease who attended an adult day care center and perceived caregiver burden of a family member that did not attend an adult day care center. Research data were collected using the Caregiver Burden Inventory (CBI) and a researcher-developed demographic survey. This study used a purposive sample of (N = 84) caregivers. Results of the study indicated no significant differences in the perceived caregiver burden between the groups. The findings indicate the need to refine community and professional understanding of the challenges caregivers face.

Low-Sodium Dietary Perceptions and Experiences of African-American Women with Hypertension.

African-Americans are disproportionately affected by hypertension with lower rates of blood pressure control in comparison to the general population (Brennan et al., 2010). Low-sodium dietary intake is one of the most important lifestyle changes that can help control hypertension (Zhang et al., 2013). This qualitative study aimed to explore and describe the perceptions and experiences of low-sodium dietary practices among African-American women with hypertension. The study used a single-category focus group design. The findings suggest that African-American women are attempting to follow a low-sodium diet; however, they are influenced by personal and environmental factors and lack a clear understanding of what a low-sodium diet entails. Therefore, nurses must understand the factors that influence African-American women's ability to follow a low-sodium diet so that effective interventions can be implemented to improve adherence in this population.

The Relationship Between Family Support, Self-Care, and Health Outcomes in Selected African-American Females with Type 2 Diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes is a chronic disease process that disproportionately affects minorities, mainly those of African-American descent (CDC, 2017). Decreasing the long-term complications associated with this disease requires substantial vigilance, lifestyle changes, medication adherence, and motivation on the part of the individual. The purpose of this descriptive correlational study, guided by Orem's (1991) Conceptual Framework Theory of Self-Care, was to explore the relationship between family support, self-care, and health outcomes in African-American females between the ages of 40-80 years with type 2 diabetes. Specifically, the investigator set out to determine: (a) the relationship between family support and health outcomes in selected African-American females with type 2 diabetes; (b) the relationship between self-care and health outcomes in selected African-American females with type 2 diabetes; and (c) which of the two variables assessed in this study (family support and self-care) best predict health outcomes. A convenience sample of African-American females between the ages of 40-80 years were recruited through Qualtrics survey software. The investigator used the Diabetes Care Profile questionnaires to extract indicators for family support and self-care. Data were analyzed using a hierarchical regression model: analysis of variance (ANOVA), and a linear regression model. The investigator hypothesized that health outcomes in African-American females with type 2 diabetes are a function of family support and self-care activities, and when family support and self-care are adjusted, they will positively affect health outcomes. The study findings show that self-care abilities are the better indicator of health outcomes, but that family support does contribute positively to health outcomes.

The Lived Experience of African-American Informal Caregivers of Family Members with Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias.

The purpose of this qualitative study was to describe the lived experience of African-American informal caregivers of family members with Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD) in a home environment. Using a qualitative, phenomenological approach, a purposive sample of 16 African-American informal caregivers completed an in-depth interview that lasted from 30 to 60 minutes. Four themes emerged: (a) a sense of obligation, (b) an arduous journey, (c) sentinel events, and (d) faith in God. Findings indicated that caregivers needed to be well-informed concerning the demands of caregiving and needed more assistance with the task of delivering care. Informal caregivers lacked support, knowledge, and guidance. Implications for the discipline of nursing include emphasis on family assessment, teaching, awareness of resources, and collaboration with healthcare teams.

Intra-family stressors among adult siblings sharing caregiving for parents.

AIM: The aim of this study was to describe a Neuman Systems Model-guided study of perceptions of family stressors experienced by adult siblings who share caregiving for their parents and the influence of these stressors on adult siblings' relationships. BACKGROUND: The task of providing informal care for disabled parents is often shared by adult siblings. Family stressors experienced as part of caregiving may affect the sibling relationship. DESIGN: A mixed-method study design was used. METHODS: Data were collected during 2013-2014 from 84 adult sibling caregivers. Seventy-two caregivers provided quantitative data for the Lifespan Sibling Relationship Scale and the Zarit Burden Scale and 79 provided qualitative data for the open-ended question. RESULTS: Adult siblings experienced mild-to-moderate levels of burden from family stressors when they share parental caregiving. The amount of burden from intra-family stressors was negatively related to the adult sibling relationship. Beneficial and noxious stressors were evident in the participants' responses to an open-ended question. CONCLUSION: The health of the parents affected the lives of adult siblings in both negative and positive ways. Although the majority of the adult siblings expressed a willingness to care for their parent(s) in an attempt to reciprocate the care, they had received from them, challenges emerged from dealing with family stressors.

African American Wives and Perceived Stressful Experiences: Providing Care for Stroke Survivor Spouses.

This research used a quantitative design to explore perceived stress experiences of African American wives in the care of spouses who are stroke survivors. The wives as caregivers (44.7%) were participants from rural communities in the southeastern region of North Carolina. These wives, although many had employment outside of the home, provided duties including activities of daily living (ADL) and all other domestic tasks. They were forced into the caregiving role, although many were often not prepared, and experienced much stress related to a lack of knowledge, training and minimum assistance from other family members. A nursing implication must include extensive discharge planning with an emphasis on education and training prior to discharge. More research in reference to African American wives as caregivers is needed to provide an adequate knowledge base in not only caring for their spouses, but also themselves.

Promoting research partnerships to reduce health disparities among vulnerable populations: sharing expertise between majority institutions and historically black universities.

This chapter focuses on promoting cultural competence in research and the care of vulnerable populations by establishing inter-university nursing partnership centers for health disparities research between historically Black universities and minority-serving institutions and research-intensive majority institutions. The Hampton-Penn Center to Reduce Health Disparities (HPC), an inter-university collaborative center funded through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) P20 funding mechanism, is discussed as the exemplar. The mission of the Hampton-Penn Center is to promote culturally competent research on health promotion and disease prevention and the examination of how culture, race and ethnicity and their interactions with the health care system and the larger society influence health outcomes and the occurrence of health disparities. The history, goals, and conceptual model underlying this collaborative effort between the University of Pennsylvania and Hampton University Schools of Nursing are described as are the accomplishments and lessons learned to date. Based upon the Hampton-Penn experience, recommendations for similar collaborations to reduce health disparities among vulnerable populations are made in three major areas: (a) increasing the study of the multi-system level factors that contribute to health disparities among vulnerable populations, (b) promoting the development of culturally competent research on health disparities, and (c) promoting the recruitment and training of health researchers who are themselves members of vulnerable populations.

Parent communication and sexual risk among African Americans.

African American adolescents and young adults disproportionately experience adverse sexual health outcomes, including HIV, other sexually transmitted infections, and unintended pregnancy. Despite the diversity of the African American population, many studies of sexual risk are limited to inner-city and clinic samples. The purpose was to examine the influence of parent-teen sexual risk communication on the sexual risk attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of 488 African American college students from a historically Black university and document the psychometric properties of the Parent-Teen Sexual Risk Communication Scale (PTSRC-III) when used with this population. The PTSRC-III demonstrated excellent internal reliability and construct validity across all four parent-teen communication dyad categories (e.g., mother-son, mother-daughter, father-son, father-daughter). PTSRC was associated with students' reports of more conservative sexual attitudes and beliefs and greater perceived ease of sexual communication with partners. PTSRC with mothers was also associated with fewer sexual risk behaviors and pregnancies among the female students.