Olimpia Paun

Older women caring for spouses with Alzheimer's disease at home: making sense of the situation.

I combined phenomenological and feminist approaches to capture older women’s own description of their Alzheimer’s disease (AD) caregiving experience. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with 14 women who were 60 or older and cared at home for their spouses diagnosed with AD. Data were analyzed using a modified version of Colaizzi’s method. Five major themes were found to define the fundamental structure of these women’s experience. Here I address only findings pertaining to the fourth theme: making sense of the situation. These findings reveal aspects unique to older women’s/wives’ AD caregiving experience.

Female Alzheimer's patient caregivers share their strength.

Spirituality is a valuable aspect in providing holistic care to Alzheimers disease (AD) caregivers. This descriptive study explored the experience of AD caregiving in 14 older-women. A sample of African American and Caucasian participants presented spirituality and religion as essential aspects of their caregiving. Taking charge, adjusting/coping, making sense of the situation, and looking into the future were the themes that reflected spiritual/religious issues. The caregivers shared similar religious practices, but differed in the way they used spirituality and religious beliefs to construct the meaning of their experience. Implications for holistic care include incorporation of these differences in nursing practice.

Staff training in assisted living: Evaluating treatment fidelity

OBJECTIVES To investigate a protocol for identifying and evaluating treatment fidelity in Staff Training in Assisted-living Residences (STAR), a structured but flexible program to train direct care staff to improve care of residents with dementia. DESIGN Multisite feasibility trial. SETTING Assisted living facilities (ALFs). PARTICIPANTS Forty-four direct care staff and 36 leadership staff. INTERVENTION STAR is a comprehensive, dementia-specific training program to teach direct care staff in ALFs to improve care and reduce affective and behavioral problems in residents with dementia. It is conducted on-site over 2 months through 2 half-day group workshops and four individualized sessions. MEASURES Treatment fidelity was assessed following the National Institute of Health Behavior Change Consortium model utilizing observations and self-report of trainers, direct care staff, and leadership. RESULTS Each key area of treatment fidelity was identified, measured, and yielded significant outcomes. For example, significant increases included direct care staff identifying activators, behaviors, and consequences (an essential component of training); understanding basics of dementia care; and applying STAR techniques. CONCLUSIONS Results support that STAR is ready to be translated and disseminated into practice. Because ALFs will continue to provide care for individuals with dementia, the need for effective, practical, and sustainable staff training programs is clear. STAR offers one such option. It is hoped that this report will encourage others to conduct comprehensive evaluations of the treatment fidelity of their programs and thereby increase the availability of such programs to enhance care.

A Chronic Grief Intervention for Dementia Family Caregivers in Long-Term Care

Dementia caregivers do not relinquish their role after placing family members in long-term care and they experience increased chronic grief. The Chronic Grief Management Intervention (CGMI) is a12-week group-based program that uses guided discussion to deliver knowledge of Alzheimer’s or a related dementia and teach skills in communication, conflict resolution, and chronic grief management in dementia caregivers who placed their family members in long-term care. Using a quasi-experimental design, 83 caregivers from 15 long-term care facilities received either the CGMI (n = 34) or a comparison condition consisting of two check-in calls (n = 49). In this pilot study, we examined the feasibility of implementing the CGMI and evaluated the effects of the intervention on caregivers’ knowledge and skill and their chronic grief and depression. The intervention was feasible and resulted in significant improvement in caregivers’ heartfelt sadness and longing at 3 months and a significant drop in their guilt at the 6-month follow-up.

Impact of an Individualized Physical Activity Intervention on Improving Mental Health Outcomes in Family Caregivers of Persons with Dementia: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Purpose This study examined secondary benefits of an individualized physical activity intervention on improving dementia family caregivers’ subjective burden, depressive symptoms and positive affect. Design and Methods A community-based randomized controlled trial (RCT) was implemented with family caregivers of persons with dementia (N = 211) who received the Enhanced Physical Activity Intervention (EPAI: treatment intervention, n = 106) or the Caregiver Skill Building Intervention (CSBI: control intervention, n = 105). Interventions were delivered over 12 months, including a baseline home visit and regularly spaced telephone calls. Data were collected in person at baseline, 6 and 12-months; and telephonically at 3 and 9-months. The EPAI integrated physical activity and caregiving content while the CSBI focused only on caregiving content. Descriptive, bivariate and intention-to-treat analyses using generalized estimating equations (GEE) were performed to examine secondary benefits of the EPAI on family caregiver burden, depressive symptoms and positive affect. Results Compared to caregivers in the CSBI group, caregivers in the EPAI significantly increased their overall and total moderate physical activity and showed a positive interaction between the intervention and time for positive affect at both six (p = 0.01) and 12-months (p = 0.03). The EPAI was significantly associated with improving burden at 3 months (p = 0.03) but had no significant effect on depressive symptoms. Implications Caregiver involvement in an individualized physical activity intervention was associated with increased overall and total moderate physical activity and improved positive affect from baseline to 12 months. Improved positive affect may help caregivers to feel better about themselves and their situation, and better enable them to continue providing care for their family member for a longer time at lower risk to their own mental health.

Family Caregivers Define and Manage the Nursing Home Placement Process

The nursing home placement process is complex and difficult for family caregivers. This qualitative descriptive study examines the experiences of caregivers involved in the management of care and placement of an older family member using the Family Management Style Framework. Ten caregivers were recruited from four nursing homes in the Midwest. The caregivers were interviewed shortly after placement and again 3 months post-placement. Results provide a unique understanding of care management and the nursing home placement process from the perspective of the primary family caregiver. Overall, there were similarities across the same types of caregiving dyads, for example, spousal and adult-children caregivers. Caregivers expressed the need to maintain the identity of their older family member, a familial responsibility for caregiving, and change in their family relationship over time. Appreciating caregivers’ challenges and needs gives health care professionals a better understanding for how to provide assistance for a smoother nursing home transition.

Role of Technology in Supporting Quality Control and Treatment Fidelity in a Family Caregiver Clinical Trial

This article describes how a family caregiver lifestyle physical activity clinical trial uses research technology to enhance quality control and treatment fidelity. This trial uses a range of Internet, Blaise® Windows-based software and Echo Server technologies to support quality control issues, such as data collection, data entry, and study management advocated by the clinical trials literature, and to ensure treatment fidelity concerning intervention implementation (i.e., design, training, delivery, receipt, and enactment) as proposed by the National Institutes of Health Behavior Change Consortium. All research staff are trained to use these technologies. Strengths of this technological approach to support quality control and treatment fidelity include the comprehensive plan, involvement of all staff, and ability to maintain accurate and timely data. Limitations include the upfront time and costs for developing and testing these technological methods, and having support staff readily available to address technological issues if they occur.

Effect of Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity Intervention onImproving Dementia Family Caregiver Physical Function: A RandomizedControlled Trial

Objective Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) affect more than five million Americans and their family caregivers. Caregiving creates challenges, may contribute to decreased caregiver health and is associated with

Dementia Caregiver Grief and Bereavement: An Integrative Review:

9.7 billion of caregiver health care costs. The purpose of this 12 month randomized clinical trial (RCT) was to examine if the Enhancing Physical Activity Intervention (EPAI), a moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) treatment group, versus the Caregiver Skill Building Intervention (CSBI) control, would have greater: (1) MVPA adherence; and (2) physical function. Methods Caregivers were randomly assigned to EPAI or CSBI (N=211). MVPA was assessed using a self-report measure; and physical function was objectively assessed using two measures. Intention-to-treat analyses used descriptive, categorical and generalized estimating equations (GEE), with an exchangeable working correlation matrix and a log link, to examine main effects and interactions in change of MVPA and physical function over time. Results At 12 months, EPAI significantly increased MVPA (p=<0.001) and number of steps (p=< .01); maintained stable caregiving hours and use of formal services; while CSBI increased hours of caregiving (p=<0.001) and used more formal services (p=<0.02). Qualitative physical function data indicated that approximately 50% of caregivers had difficulties completing physical function tests. Conclusion The EPAI had a stronger 12 month effect on caregiver MVPA and physical function, as well as maintaining stability of caregiving hours and formal service use; while CSBI increased caregiving hours and use of formal services. A study limitation included greater EPAI versus CSBI attrition. Future directions are proposed for dementia family caregiver physical activity research.

Effects of a Staff Training Intervention on Seclusion Rates on an Adult Inpatient Psychiatric Unit

Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias make up the fifth leading cause of death for individuals of 65 years of age and older in the United States. Seventy percent of these individuals will die in long-term care settings. The aim of this integrative review was to examine and synthesize the evidence on grief and bereavement in Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias caregivers. This review identified five critical gaps in the existing evidence: (a) a lack of ethnic and gender diversity among caregivers studied, (b) limited use of valid instruments to study dementia caregiver grief and bereavement, (c) no substantive research examining dementia caregiver grief and bereavement for caregivers whose family members die in long-term care, (d) a lack of evidence examining the effect of hospice services on dementia caregiver grief and bereavement, and (e) a lack of grief and bereavement interventions for dementia caregivers whose family members die in long-term care.