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BMC Palliative Care
Published in: BMC Palliative Care 1/2010

Open Access 01-12-2010 | Research article

A systematic review of psychosocial interventions for family carers of palliative care patients

Authors: Peter L Hudson, Cheryl Remedios, Kristina Thomas

Published in: BMC Palliative Care | Issue 1/2010

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Abstract

Background

Being a family carer to a patient nearing the end of their life is a challenging and confronting experience. Studies show that caregiving can have negative consequences on the health of family carers including fatigue, sleep problems, depression, anxiety and burnout. One of the goals of palliative care is to provide psychosocial support to patients and families facing terminal illness. A systematic review of interventions for family carers of cancer and palliative care patients conducted at the start of this millennium demonstrated that there was a dearth of rigorous inquiry on this topic and consequently limited knowledge regarding the types of interventions likely to be effective in meeting the complex needs of family carers. We wanted to discern whether or not the evidence base to support family carers has improved. Furthermore, undertaking this review was acknowledged as one of the priorities for the International Palliative Care Family Carer Research Collaboration http://​www.​centreforpallcar​e.​org.

Methods

A systematic review was undertaken in order to identify developments in family carer support that have occurred over the last decade. The focus of the review was on interventions that targeted improvements in the psychosocial support of family carers of palliative care patients. Studies were graded to assess their quality.

Results

A total of fourteen studies met the inclusion criteria. The focus of interventions included psycho-education, psychosocial support, carer coping, symptom management, sleep promotion and family meetings. Five studies were randomised controlled trials, three of which met the criteria for the highest quality evidence. There were two prospective studies, five pre-test/post-test projects and two qualitative studies.

Conclusions

The systematic review identified a slight increase in the quality and quantity of psychosocial interventions conducted for family carers in the last decade. More rigorous intervention research is required in order to meet the supportive care needs of family carers of palliative care patients.
Appendix
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Metadata
Title
A systematic review of psychosocial interventions for family carers of palliative care patients
Authors
Peter L Hudson
Cheryl Remedios
Kristina Thomas
Publication date
01-12-2010
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
BMC Palliative Care / Issue 1/2010
Electronic ISSN: 1472-684X
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-684X-9-17

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