The start of caring for an elderly dependent family member: A qualitative metasynthesis

Background: The family often takes care of an elderly person who suddenly becomes dependent. This greatly affects different aspects of the caregivers’ lives. The aim of this study is to explore the initial experiences, during the first year of care, of persons who suddenly become caregivers for elde...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Moral-Fernández, Lourdes, Frías-Osuna, Antonio, Moreno-Cámara, Sara, Palomino-Moral, Pedro Ángel, Del-Pino-Casado, Rafael
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión aceptada para publicación
Fecha de publicación:2018
País:España
Institución:Universidad de Jaén
Repositorio:RUJA. Repositorio Institucional de la Producción Científica de la Universidad de Jaén
OAI Identifier:oai:ruja.ujaen.es:10953/2151
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10953/2151
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Family caregiver
Qualitative
Metasynthesis
Initial
Elderly dependent
Descripción
Sumario:Background: The family often takes care of an elderly person who suddenly becomes dependent. This greatly affects different aspects of the caregivers’ lives. The aim of this study is to explore the initial experiences, during the first year of care, of persons who suddenly become caregivers for elderly dependent relatives. Methods: A search in CINAHL, PsycINFO, WOS, Medline, and Scopus and a metasynthesis of qualitative research were conducted including 19 articles. Results: Three categories were developed to explain the process of becoming a caregiver ‘taking on the role’ (life changes, uncertainty and confusion, and acceptance or resistance); ‘beginning to realise’ (new needs, impact, and appraisal); and ‘implementing strategies’ (seeking help and self-learning, reordering family and social relationships, solving problems, and devising strategies to decrease negative emotions and stress). Conclusions: The synthesis provides a comprehensive understanding of the experience of becoming a caregiver in order to help health-care professionals to adapt care plans to this situation.