The mediating role of coping strategies between caregiving burden and pre-death grief among Chinese adult-child caregivers of dementia patients.

AIMS: The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between caregiving burden and pre-death grief, with a specific focus on adult-child caregivers in mainland China. Additionally, the study explored whether coping strategies played a mediating role in this correlation. METHODS: A convenience sample of 320 adult-child caregivers of older parents with dementia from Kunming, mainland China, was recruited for the study. Data were collected using the Chinese version of the Marwit-Meuser Caregiver Grief Inventory-Short Form, the Burden Scale for Family Caregivers, and the Ways of Coping Checklist-Revised. RESULTS: Results using linear regression and multiple mediation analysis with Hayes' process model indicated that caregiving burden was positively related to pre-death grief and that active coping mediated the relationship between them. In the female group, active coping partially mediated the association between caregiving burden and pre-death grief, but in the male group, this mediating effect did not exist. CONCLUSION: The study found evidence supporting the link between caregiving burden and pre-death grief among adult-child caregivers of older parents with dementia in mainland China. Furthermore, the caregiving burden prevented the use of active coping, and this decrease in coping increased the perception of pre-death grief. These associations only existed in the female group. IMPLICATIONS: This paper presented the importance of active coping skills in the dementia caregiving process. IMPACT: The findings of this study emphasize the necessity for health practitioners to provide targeted interventions regarding pre-death grief among dementia caregivers and strengthen caregivers' active coping strategies to reduce their pre-death grief. Community-based and personal care support services should be promoted to alleviate their caregiving burden. REPORTING METHOD: We have adhered to the transparent reporting of evaluations with quantitative design statements and the corresponding checklist was followed. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: 'No patient or public involvement'.

Examining Online Behaviors of Adult-Child and Spousal Caregivers for People Living With Alzheimer Disease or Related Dementias: Comparative Study in an Open Online Community.

BACKGROUND: Alzheimer disease or related dementias (ADRD) are severe neurological disorders that impair the thinking and memory skills of older adults. Most persons living with dementia receive care at home from their family members or other unpaid informal caregivers; this results in significant mental, physical, and financial challenges for these caregivers. To combat these challenges, many informal ADRD caregivers seek social support in online environments. Although research examining online caregiving discussions is growing, few investigations have distinguished caregivers according to their kin relationships with persons living with dementias. Various studies have suggested that caregivers in different relationships experience distinct caregiving challenges and support needs. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to examine and compare the online behaviors of adult-child and spousal caregivers, the 2 largest groups of informal ADRD caregivers, in an open online community. METHODS: We collected posts from ALZConnected, an online community managed by the Alzheimer's Association. To gain insights into online behaviors, we first applied structural topic modeling to identify topics and topic prevalence between adult-child and spousal caregivers. Next, we applied VADER (Valence Aware Dictionary for Sentiment Reasoning) and LIWC (Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count) to evaluate sentiment changes in the online posts over time for both types of caregivers. We further built machine learning models to distinguish the posts of each caregiver type and evaluated them in terms of precision, recall, F1-score, and area under the precision-recall curve. Finally, we applied the best prediction model to compare the temporal trend of relationship-predicting capacities in posts between the 2 types of caregivers. RESULTS: Our analysis showed that the number of posts from both types of caregivers followed a long-tailed distribution, indicating that most caregivers in this online community were infrequent users. In comparison with adult-child caregivers, spousal caregivers tended to be more active in the community, publishing more posts and engaging in discussions on a wider range of caregiving topics. Spousal caregivers also exhibited slower growth in positive emotional communication over time. The best machine learning model for predicting adult-child, spousal, or other caregivers achieved an area under the precision-recall curve of 81.3%. The subsequent trend analysis showed that it became more difficult to predict adult-child caregiver posts than spousal caregiver posts over time. This suggests that adult-child and spousal caregivers might gradually shift their discussions from questions that are more directly related to their own experiences and needs to questions that are more general and applicable to other types of caregivers. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that it is important for researchers and community organizers to consider the heterogeneity of caregiving experiences and subsequent online behaviors among different types of caregivers when tailoring online peer support to meet the specific needs of each caregiver group.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Level of Anxiety and Depression in Caregivers of Children Benefiting from Neurorehabilitation Services.

INTRODUCTION: At the turn of March and April 2020, due to the occurrence of COVID-19 in Poland, the first restrictions on the provision of rehabilitation services were introduced. Nevertheless, caregivers strived to ensure that their children could benefit from rehabilitation services. AIM OF THE STUDY: To determine which of the selected data presented in the media reflecting the intensity of the COVID-19 epidemic in Poland differentiated the level of anxiety and depression in caregivers of children benefiting from neurorehabilitation services. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study group consisted of caregivers of children (n = 454) receiving various neurorehabilitation services in the inpatient ward of Neurological Rehabilitation of Children and Adolescents (n = 200, 44%), in the Neurorehabilitation Day Ward (n = 168, 37%), and in the Outpatient Clinic (n = 86, 19%) of the Clinical Regional Rehabilitation and Education Center in Rzeszow. The average age of the respondents was 37.23 ± 7.14 years. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was used to measure the severity of anxiety and depression in caregivers of children. The questionnaires were distributed from June 2020 to April 2021. As a measure of the severity of the COVID-19 epidemic in Poland, the figures presented in the media were adopted. In addition, data on the COVID-19 pandemic presented in the media (Wikipedia, TVP Info, Polsat Nes, Radio Zet) on the day preceding the completion of the survey were analyzed based on statistical analysis methods. RESULTS: 73 of the surveyed caregivers (16.08%) suffered from severe anxiety disorders, and 21 (4.63%) from severe depressive disorders. The average severity of anxiety (HADS) in the subjects was 6.37 points, and the average severity of depression was 4.09 points. There was no statistically significant relationship between the data presented in the media-such as daily number of infections, total number of infections, daily number of deaths, total number of deaths, total number of recoveries, number of hospitalizations, and people under quarantine-and the level of anxiety and depression of the studied caregivers (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: It was not found that the selected data presented in the media, showing the intensity of the COVID-19 epidemic in Poland, significantly differentiated the level of anxiety and depression among caregivers of children using neurorehabilitation services. Their motivation to continue the treatment, caused by concern for their children's health, resulted in less severe symptoms of anxiety and depression during the peak period of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Procurando o hospital durante a pandemia de covid-19: perspectivas dos pais e cuidadores de crianças adoecidas / Searching for the hospital during the covid-19 pandemic: prospects for parents and carers of sick children / Buscando el hospital durante la pandemia covid-19: perspectivas de los padres y cuidado de los niños enfermos

Objetivo: apreender as perspectivas dos pais ou cuidadores sobre a necessidade de levar a criança adoecida ao hospital e as vivências durante a internação em tempos de pandemia de covid-19. Método: pesquisa exploratória, de abordagem qualitativa, desenvolvida com pais ou responsáveis de crianças internadas no setor de pediatria de um hospital de ensino, acometidas por outras doenças que não a covid-19. A coleta de dados ocorreu por meio de entrevistas áudio-gravadas. Foi empregada a análise de conteúdo, modalidade temática. Resultados: a população do estudo foi constituída por 18 entrevistados. Após leitura exaustiva do corpus duas categorias foram formuladas: "sentimentos e perspectivas ao procurar o serviço de saúde" e "hospitalização durante a pandemia e importância dos profissionais de saúde". Considerações finais: os familiares das crianças adoecidas vivenciaram medo, estresse, angústia, e preocupação ao procurar o atendimento hospitalar no contexto da pandemia, e alguns chegaram a adiar a busca pela assistência. Durante a internação esses sentimentos foram superados pelo conhecimento da organização do hospital e as orientações dos profissionais de saúde foram cruciais. É indispensável conduzir novas pesquisas que fundamentem o planejamento de ações e a reorganização dos serviços de saúde infantil.

Objective: To learn the perspectives of parents or caregivers on the need to take the sick child to hospital and the experiences during hospitalization in times of the covid-19 pandemic. Method: exploratory, qualitative-based research conducted with parents or guardians of children in a teaching hospital's pediatrics sector, affected by diseases other than covid-19. Data collection took place through audio-recorded interviews. The analysis of content, a thematic modality, was used. Results: the study population consisted of 18 respondents. After an exhaustive reading of the corpus, two categories were formulated: "feelings and perspectives when looking for the health service" and "hospitalization during the pandemic and importance of health professionals". Final considerations: the families of the sick children experienced fear, stress, distress, and concern when seeking hospital care in the context of the pandemic, and some even postponed the search for assistance. During hospitalization these feelings were overcome by the knowledge of the hospital organization and the guidance of the health professionals was crucial. It is indispensable to conduct new research that will inform the planning of actions and the reorganization of child health services.

Propósito: comprender las perspectivas de los padres o cuidadores sobre la necesidad de llevar al niño enfermo al hospital y las experiencias durante la hospitalización en tiempos de una pandemia cóvido-19. Método: investigación exploratoria, cualitativa, desarrollada con padres o gestores de niños hospitalizados en el sector pediátrico de un hospital de enseñanza, que padecen enfermedades distintas del covid-19. La recopilación de datos se realizó mediante entrevistas grabadas en audio. Se utilizó el análisis del contenido, la modalidad temática. Resultados: la población estudiada fue de 18 entrevistados. Después de una minuciosa lectura del corpus, se formularon dos categorías: "sentimientos y perspectivas en la búsqueda del servicio de salud" y "hospitalización durante la pandemia y la importancia de los profesionales de la salud". Consideraciones finales: los parientes de los niños enfermos experimentaron miedo, estrés, angustia y preocupación al buscar atención hospitalaria en el contexto de la pandemia, y algunos incluso pospusieron la búsqueda de asistencia. Durante el internamiento estos sentimientos fueron superados por el conocimiento de la organización del hospital y las pautas de los profesionales de la salud fueron cruciales. Es indispensable realizar nuevas investigaciones que sirvan de base para la planificación de acciones y la reorganización de los servicios de salud infantil.

Sobrecarga de Cuidadores Primários de Crianças com Cardiopatia Congênita / Burden of primary caregivers of children with congenital heart disease / Sobrecarga de los Cuidadores Primarios de niños con cardiopatías congénitas

Objetivo: identificar o nível de sobrecarga nos cuidadores primários de crianças com cardiopatia congênita. Método: estudo transversal descritivo de abordagem quantitativa. A coleta de dados foi realizada em ambiente virtual nos meses de junho de 2021 até fevereiro de 2022, após aprovação pelo Comitê de Ética em Pesquisa. Utilizou-se um formulário para caracterização da amostra e a escala Zarit Burden. Os dados foram analisados através do programa SPSS versão 24 utilizando a estatística descritiva e análise de variância de p≤0,05. Protocolo de pesquisa aprovado pelo Comitê de Ética em Pesquisa. Resultados: participaram 100 mães com média de idade entre 34,08 anos, a maioria casada (57%), residentes do estado de São Paulo (25%), com ensino médio completo (51%) Observou-se que 56,0% evidenciaram sobrecarga moderada. Conclusão: a sobrecarga é uma realidade em cuidadores primários de crianças com cardiopatias congênitas e o compartilhamento de cuidado e apoio familiar são identificados como fatores de proteção.

Objective: to identify the burden level on primary caregivers of children with congenital heart disease. Method: descriptive cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach. Data collection was carried out in a virtual environment from June 2021 to February 2022, after approval by the Research Ethics Committee. A form was used to characterize the sample and the Zarit Burden scale. Data were analyzed using the SPSS version 24 program using descriptive statistics and analysis of variance of p≤0.05. Research protocol approved by the Research Ethics Committee. Results: 100 mothers participated with a mean age of 34.08 years, most of them married (57%), residents of the state of São Paulo (25%), with complete secondary education (51%) It was observed that 56.0% showed moderate overload. Conclusion: burden is a reality in primary caregivers of children with congenital heart disease and sharing care and family support are identified as protective factors.

Objetivo: identificar el nivel de sobrecarga de los cuidadores principales de niños con cardiopatías congénitas. Método: estudio descriptivo transversal con enfoque cuantitativo. La recolección de datos se realizó en ambiente virtual de junio de 2021 a febrero de 2022, previa aprobación del Comité de Ética en Investigación. Se utilizó un formulario para caracterizar la muestra y la escala de Zarit. Los datos se analizaron con el programa SPSS versión 24 mediante estadística descriptiva y análisis de desviación de p≤0,05. El Comité de Ética en Investigación aprobó el Protocolo de investigación. Resultados: Participaron 100 madres con media de edad de 34,08 años, la mayoría casadas (57%), residentes en el estado de São Paulo (25%), con educación secundaria completa (51%). Se observó que el 56,0% mostró moderada sobrecarga. Conclusión: la sobrecarga es una realidad en los cuidadores primarios de niños con cardiopatías congénitas; el cuidado compartido y el apoyo familiar se identifican como factores de protección.

Enfrentamento materno do câncer pediátrico em quatro fases da doença / Maternal coping with childhood cancer in four stages of the disease

O cuidador familiar fornece apoio fundamental em doenças crônicas como o câncer, sofrendo a maior sobrecarga física, emocional e social. Esta pesquisa analisou o processo de enfrentamento de quatro mães de crianças com câncer com idade entre 7-13 anos, em diferentes fases da doença - diagnóstico [M1], tratamento [M2], manutenção [M3] e terminalidade [M4]. As mães responderam individualmente o Protocolo de Entrevista sobre Enfrentamento Materno do Câncer de Crianças e Adolescentes, com 34 questões. Os maiores estressores relacionaram-se à dificuldade do prognóstico do caso, à falta de tempo e energia para dedicar-se à família e às dificuldades financeiras. As mães apresentaram mais estratégias de enfrentamento adaptativas, como: Autoconfiança, Resolução de problemas, Busca de informação e Acomodação, indicativas de percepção de desafio às necessidades de Relacionamento, de Competência e de Autonomia. Os dados evidenciam a necessidade de avaliar e atender às demandas dessa população, considerando a fase da doença.

The family caregiver provides fundamental support in chronic diseases such as cancer, suffering the greatest physical, emotional and social burden. This research analyzed the process of coping with four mothers of children with cancer aged 7-13 years, at different stages of the disease - diagnosis [M1], treatment [M2], maintenance [M3] and terminality [M4]. Mothers individually answered the Interview Protocol on Coping with Cancer of Children and Adolescents, with 34 questions. The biggest stressors were related to the difficulty of the prognosis of the case, the lack of time and energy to dedicate to the family and the financial difficulties. Mothers presented more adaptive coping strategies, such as: Self-confidence, Problem solving, Information search and Accommodation, indicative of perceived challenge to the needs of Relationship, Competence and Autonomy. The data show the need to assess and meet the demands of this population, considering the stage of the disease.

Caring for home-dwelling parents with dementia: A qualitative study of adult-child caregivers' motivation.

Aim: To explore adult children's motivation in caregiving for their home-dwelling parents with dementia. Design: Qualitative design with a phenomenological approach. Methods: Semi-structured individual interviews with 21 adult sons and daughters who were caregivers for a parent with dementia. Data were analysed using systematic text condensation. Results: Inspired by self-determination theory, three categories were identified in the empirical data representing the main motivational drivers for adult-child caregivers: relatedness (to the parent with dementia, the parent's spouse, other persons), competence (in handling dementia, in the parent's need) and autonomy (freedom of choice, innate values and tasks). Caregivers report relatedness as their key motivational driver.These results imply that nurses and other health professionals should value the importance of relatedness when interacting with dementia caregivers and establish belonging support structures. Further research should generate more knowledge of the positive motivational drivers, including interventions to improve relatedness, competence and autonomy.

First-aid knowledge regarding small area burns in children among 5814 caregivers: A questionnaire analysis.

BACKGROUND: To assess caregivers'knowledge of first aid for small-area thermal burns in children, and reduce burns-induced morbidity and damage in children. METHODS: The multi-stage cluster random sampling method was used to recruit school-age children from different kinds of schools. For each child, we selected only one caregiver as our study participant. First-aid knowledge regarding small area burns in children and choices of medical treatment were investigated in the manner of questionnaires. RESULTS: The effective response rate of questionnaire was 99.4% (5814/5850). Folk remedies and daily necessities were chosen by 17.8% (1,036/5814) and 48.9% (2841/5814), respectively. 39.8% (2,312/5814) of caregivers knew all standard burn first aid measures. Moreover, the proportion of knowing all five measures among caregivers with undergraduate education was significantly higher than the figures among those with other educational levels. CONCLUSIONS: Child caregivers had poor knowledge of first aid for small area burns in children. Only a few caregivers knew all five standard first aid measures for managing small area burns. Many non-scientific and inappropriate home remedies are still widely applied among Shanghai citizens. Our study results suggest relevant scientific evidence-informed measures should be more widely disseminated to the citizens.

[Care of parents with dementia: comparison of caregiving sons and daughters]. / Pflege demenzerkrankter Eltern: Vergleich pflegender Söhne und Töchter.

BACKGROUND: In view of the demographic changes and the associated increasing need for care, the role of caregiving sons will also become more important; however, little is known about the caregiving experiences of sons. OBJECTIVE: Potential differences between caregiving sons and daughters were investigated with respect to the style of caregiving, the feeling of stress and burden and the utilization of support offers. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Baseline survey data from the interventional study Tele.TAnDem conducted from September 2012 to January 2014 were analyzed. From the total sample of 322 caregiving relatives of people suffering from dementia the participating sons (n = 17) were selected. For comparison 17 participants from the subsample of daughters (n = 111) were selected by propensity score matching. The analyses were conducted using t­tests, Mann-Whitney tests and χ2-tests. RESULTS: The analyses regarding the style of caregiving, the feeling of stress and burden and the utilization of professional and informal assistance did not reach statistical significance. Daughters scored on average higher than sons only with respect to the acceptance of the caregiving situation (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Overall caregiving daughters and sons did not differ with respect to caregiving experiences as strongly as previously assumed. Perhaps earlier studies found more gender differences because caregiving sons compared to daughters already have different initial situations, which however remained uncontrolled.

Sobrecarga do cuidador familiar de crianças com necessidades especiais de saúde / The burden of family caregiver of children with special health needs

O estudo objetivou identificar a sobrecarga física, emocional e social de cuidadores de crianças com necessidades especiais de saúde e analisar os fatores associados. Estudo de delineamento transversal e abordagem quantitativa. Aplicado instrumento de caracterização e Escala de Sobrecarga para Cuidadores Informais -Burden Interview. Utilizado teste Qui-quadrado, Exato de Fisher, Kruskal-Wallis e regressão logística politômica, simples e múltipla. Participaram 100 cuidadores, a maioria (57%) apresentou sobrecarga moderada a severa. Os cuidadores de crianças que demandam cuidados mistos e aqueles que não possuíam crença religiosa apresentaram maior risco para sobrecarga (p=0,005 e 0,035respectivamente). Trata-se de estudo inédito pois, inexistem investigações que mensuram quantitativamente a sobrecarga dos cuidadores de crianças com necessidades especiais de saúde, de um modo geral, não especificando diagnósticos médicos. Conclui-se que, ao reconhecer os fatores associados à sobrecarga, estratégias de cuidado com vistas a amenizar a sobrecarga podem ser implantadas e, consequentemente, qualificando o cuidado ofertado.

The study aimed to identify the physical, emotional and social burden of caregivers of children with special health needs and to analyze the associated factors. A cross-sectional quantitative study design. A characterization instrument and a Burden Scale for Informal Caregivers ­Burden Interview were answered. The Chi-Square, Fisher's Exact test, Kruskal-Wallis and simple and multiple logistic regression were calculated. One hundred caregivers participated, the majority (57%) had a moderate or severe burden. Caregivers of children requiring mixed care and those who did not have a religious belief had a higher risk for burden (p=0.005 and 0.035 respectively). This is a novel study because there are no investigations quantitatively measuring the burden of caregivers ofchildren with special health needs in general, not specifying medical diagnoses. In conclusion, when recognizing the factors associated to burden, care strategies to alleviate the burden can be implemented and, consequently, qualifying the offered care.

Validation of the Client Diagnostic Questionnaire to Assess Mental Health in South African Caregivers of Children.

BACKGROUND: Given the high prevalence of mental health (MH) and substance abuse problems in low-to-middle income countries, the scarcity of MH professionals and the negative impact of psychiatric disorders on caregivers of young children, there is significant need for brief evidence-based screening tools for lay counselors to assist with MH assessment. This study aimed to validate a brief screening tool to assess psychiatric and substance use disorders, the Client Diagnostic Questionnaire (CDQ), in South Africa (SA). METHODS: Data are from a longitudinal study of health and psychosocial needs in preschool children in SA. Participants included 322 Zulu-speaking, female caregivers. Following procedures of the US CDQ validation study, lay counselors interviewed participants using the translated Zulu CDQ. Subsequently a psychologist conducted a full psychiatric assessment guided by the CDQ questions. Analyses examined sensitivity, specificity and overall accuracy, comparing lay counselor and psychologist assessment. RESULTS: Sensitivity (73%), specificity (81%) and overall accuracy (79%) were good for the variable indicating presence of 'any diagnosis.' Among those cases identified by the psychologist as having any psychiatric diagnosis, over 70% were correctly identified by lay counselors using the CDQ (i.e., positive predictive value was greater than 70%). The false positive rate was relatively low (19%). Specificity for 'any disorder' (including substance use) and 'any psychiatric disorder' were 81% and 79%. CONCLUSIONS: The isiZulu CDQ is a sensitive and valid MH diagnostic screener that can be used by lay counselors with limited MH training to identify those in need of treatment and target extremely scarce MH professionals. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. KEY PRACTITIONER MESSAGES: South Africa (SA), a country heavily impacted by poverty, HIV and the legacy of Apartheid, has a high prevalence of mental health (MH) and substance abuse problems. In SA and other low-and-middle-income-countries (LMIC) there is a dearth of MH professionals. This study examined use and validity of the Client Diagnostic Questionnaire (CDQ), a brief diagnostic MH screening tool designed for use by lay counselors in HIV-affected populations. Comparing lay counsellor diagnoses on the CDQ to clinician assessment, sensitivity, specificity and overall accuracy were good at the level of 'any diagnosis.' The CDQ can be used effectively in SA and other LMIC with limited MH services to enable appropriate and efficient referral of individuals in primary care settings, supporting caregivers and the children in their care.

"EFFECTIVE VOLUNTEERISM:" HELPING CHILD CAREGIVERS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES.

This article proposes a method of volunteering mental health consultation to child caregivers in developing countries in the context of episodic visits and a long-term relationship. It is derived from the author's experience doing this work for approximately 12 years. The two foundational features of the method-the role of a consultant and a long-term relationship-are described. The method is then elaborated in two settings: consultation to caregivers in an orphanage in Central America and at a hospital in India. While these examples are distinct in multiple domains, they have in common the core features of the consultative model and a long-term relationship. Finally, the article briefly addresses challenges that the consultant experiences when working with neglected and traumatized children and the usefulness of reflective practice. It is hoped that an articulation of this method may make it possible for many who might wish to volunteer to do so, in a way that neither interferes significantly with their work and family life at home nor creates the problems of "helicopter volunteering."

Screening Caregivers of Children for Risky Drinking in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

Background and Objectives Alcohol abuse, a significant health problem in South Africa, affects the ability of adults to care for children. Little is known regarding risky alcohol use among child caregivers there. A large population-based study examined the prevalence of, and factors associated with, risky drinking among caregivers of young children in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa comparing the use of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) and the AUDIT-C screens for hazardous or harmful drinking (referred to here as risky drinking). Methods 83 % of child caregivers from five tribal areas were interviewed using the 10-question AUDIT to screen for risky drinking. The AUDIT-C screen, a subset of AUDIT questions, targets alcohol consumption and binge drinking. Factors associated with risky drinking were investigated using logistic regression. Results 1434 caregivers participated, 98 % female. Sixteen percent reported ever drinking alcohol. Based on AUDIT criteria for risky drinking, 13 % of the sample scored as moderate drinkers, 2 % as hazardous users, and 1 % as harmful or dependent users (identifying 3 % as risky drinkers). Using AUDIT-C criteria to identify risky drinking significantly increased the proportion of caregivers identified as risky drinkers to 9 %. In multivariate analyses, factors associated with risky drinking were similar in both screens: partner violence, smoking, HIV-infection, caring for a child with disabilities. Conclusions for Practice Since the AUDIT-C identified risky alcohol use not otherwise detected with the full AUDIT, and since resources for screening in health care settings is limited, the AUDIT-C may be a more appropriate screen in populations where binge drinking is common.

Percepções e práticas de cuidadoras comunitárias no cuidado de crianças menores de três anos / Views and practices of community caregivers in providing care to children aged fewer than three years

O objetivo desta investigação foi conhecer as percepções e formas de cuidar de cuidadoras comunitárias de crianças menores de três anos. Trata-se de um estudo exploratório-descritivo com análise qualitativa dos dados. A definição dos sujeitos do estudo foi realizada por meio de mapeamento de possíveis cuidadores comunitários de crianças menores de três anos de idade. Para coleta dos dados, foi utilizada entrevista semiestruturada, com 18 cuidadoras comunitárias, em suas residências. Foi realizada análise categorial temática dos dados, por meio da qual foram identificadas duas categorias: o cuidado na perspectiva do cuidador e formas de cuidar. A primeira categoria evidenciou que o cuidado de crianças menores de três anos é uma tarefa que exige responsabilidade e comprometimento. A segunda categoria mostrou que as cuidadoras priorizam a alimentação, higiene e segurança da criança e consideram o brincar importante para estimular a aprendizagem e a socialização da criança. Este estudo mostrou a necessidade de se propiciar mais espaços de diálogo entre mães, pais, outros familiares, cuidadoras comunitárias e profissionais que lidam com a infância, com o intuito de se ampliar os conhecimentos sobre o cuidado infantil.

The aim of this study was to understand the views and approaches community caregivers use to provide care to children aged fewer than three years. This is an exploratory, descriptive study with qualitative data analysis. Study subjects were defined by mapping possible community caregivers assisting children under three years old. Semi structured interviews were conducted among 18 community caregivers, in their homes. A thematic categorial data analysis was performed, which allowed two categories to be identified: care from the caregiver's viewpoint and ways of caring. The first category showed that caring for children aged fewer than three years is a task that requires responsibility and commitment. The second category showed that caregivers prioritize the children's nutrition, hygiene and safety, and that they consider playing important to drive the kids' learning and socialization process. This study showed the need to provide more opportunities for dialog among mothers, fathers, other family members, caregivers, and community professionals who deal with childhood with the aim to increase knowledge about child care.