1. Objectifs

Intentions :
«[T]he goal of this study was to describe the unmet needs of family caregivers of older adults during the care transition. To assist in targeting the intervention, [the authors] also aimed to identify subgroups of caregivers with different unmet needs.» (p. 132)

2. Méthode

Échantillon/Matériau :
«Recruitment of patient-family caregiver dyads took place on two medical wards of a community-based, university-affiliated acute care hospital in Montreal, Canada.» (p. 132) The final sample is made of 146 dyads.

Instruments :
Questionnaires

Type de traitement des données :
Analyse statistique

3. Résumé

«Unmet needs of family caregivers in this study may reflect longer term needs that existed before hospitalization as well as new ones that arose during the hospitalization. These needs were of three types: medical information about their relative; understanding of their caregiver roles; and reassurance that their relative is getting high quality care. Communication of health professionals with patients and family is often inadequate. Caregivers rate the quality of planning for discharge lower than do patients, perhaps indicating either that discharge planning is focussed on patient rather that caregiver needs. Further, because time is usually needed to put community services into place, caregivers often carry the majority of the burden of care immediately after discharge. The caregiver groups identified in the regression tree analysis are clinically meaningful; one subgroup had low unmet needs, one subgroup moderate, and two subgroups had high levels of unmet needs in all three types. The subgroup with low unmet needs was characterized by low burden, and caring for patients who were more independent. This subgroup of caregivers also had less caregiving experience, provided support less frequently, and fewer of their care recipients had a diagnosis of dementia.» (p. 141)