Book Review: Wittenberg, E., Goldsmith, J. V., Ragan, S. L., & Parnell, T. A. (2020). Caring for the Family Caregiver: Palliative Care Communication and Health Literacy. Oxford University Press

2021 ◽  
pp. 104990912199736
Author(s):  
Maryjo Prince-Paul
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Health Literacy ◽  
Family Caregiver ◽  
Family Caregiving ◽  
Family System ◽  
Oxford University ◽  
Caregiver Health ◽  
The Family ◽  
Communication Needs ◽  
Oxford University Press

Caring for the Family Caregiver is published by Oxford University Press and introduces the novel framework of the Family Caregiver Communication Typology. The volume offers a close analysis of caregiver health literacy and patient outcomes and invites readers to consider the family system as the driver in shaping how family caregivers deal with chronic illness demands. The expertise of all authors (three health communication scholars and one nurse who is a health literacy expert) in the analysis illuminates the delicate balance between caregivers’ ability to understand and communicate in the context of social determinants of health. The book shares the interwoven challenges of palliative care, family caregiving, and health literacy. Caring for the Family Caregiver establishes the urgent call to address family caregiver information and communication needs and leaves the reader empowered to make changes in their own clinical practice communication and/or develop family caregiving research that addresses cultural and social factors.

The Family Caregiver Communication Typology

2020 ◽  
pp. 77-102
Author(s):  
Elaine Wittenberg ◽  
Joy V. Goldsmith ◽  
Sandra L. Ragan ◽  
Terri Ann Parnell
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Illness ◽  
Health Literacy ◽  
Family Caregiver ◽  
Family System ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Family Expectations ◽  
The Family ◽  
Tailored Communication ◽  
Tailored Approach ◽  
Communication Needs

Chronic illness in the family can force patterns to change or a create a struggle to maintain existing patterns. When healthcare providers seek to learn what exists before illness for the patient and family caregiver, they are endowed with the knowledge to provide tailored communication to better meet their health literacy needs. This chapter details how the family system influences a caregiver’s communication and caregiving experience, demonstrating the need for an integrated and tailored approach to care for the family caregiver. Family expectations, decisions, roles, and uncertainty figure prominently in setting the stage for the caregiver communication burden incurred in the process of caregiving. The authors present the program and process of research that resulted in the creation of the family caregiver communication typology and detail four family caregiver communication types, which aid in understanding a caregiver’s communication needs and preferences.

Caring for the Family Caregiver

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elaine Wittenberg ◽  
Joy Goldsmith ◽  
Sandra L. Ragan ◽  
Terri Ann Parnell
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Health Literacy ◽  
Family Caregiver ◽  
Communication Theory ◽  
Family System ◽  
Interdisciplinary Approach ◽  
Current Data ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Impact

This remarkable work reveals the plight of the family caregiver in chronic illness through the prism of communication. Examining the high cost and poorly addressed exigencies of the caregiver, including health literacy, palliative care, and health outcomes, Elaine Wittenberg, Joy V. Goldsmith, Sandra L. Ragan, and Terri Ann Parnell use an interdisciplinary approach in an effort to identify the impact of communication and its burdens on the caregiver. This team of scholars present four caregiver profiles, the Manager, Carrier, Partner, and Lone caregiver, each emerging from a family system with different patterns of conversational sharing and expectations of conformity. This volume presents a picture of the costs and losses for caregivers that go unseen and remain invisible for stakeholders in the healthcare experience. By synthesizing current data assessing the experiences of caregivers, as well as integrating the narrative experiences of a range of caregivers living through a variety of illnesses and their specific demands, the writers deliver an unflinching gaze at the journey of the caregiver. With an author team comprised of three health communication researchers and a nurse and health literacy expert, this volume integrates literature addressing caregiver needs and burdens, communication theory and practice, and palliative care and health literacy research to present the groundbreaking concept of the caregiver types and an innovative set of support resources to facilitate improved pathways to better care for the caregiver. Their engaging and rigorous writing style integrates the real stories of caregivers across the scope of the book connecting the reader with the people inside the pages and making the book essential for providers, students, clinicians, policymakers, and family caregivers alike.

Support interventions for families of people with terminal cancer in palliative care

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 580-588 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neide P. Areia ◽  
José N. Góngora ◽  
Sofia Major ◽  
Vivianne D. Oliveira ◽  
Ana P. Relvas
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Systematic Reviews ◽  
Family Caregiver ◽  
Terminal Illness ◽  
Family System ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Care Plan ◽  
Terminal Phase ◽  
Terminal Cancer ◽  
The Family

AbstractObjectiveThe terminal phase of cancer represents a major crisis for the family system. Regardless of the caregiving role they undertake, family members are forced to address multiple impacts when facing the approaching death of their terminally ill loved one. International guidelines recognize the importance of integrating the family into a care plan. However, more needs to be known about how to deliver optimal family support. The purpose of this study is to review the current state of the art in family/caregiver-focused interventions of people with terminal cancer in palliative care.MethodFor this purpose, an overview of the literature's systematic reviews on the topic was conducted to select Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) on family/caregiver-focused interventions.ResultsNine interventions were found in the systematic reviews of literature and meta-analysis. These family/caregiver-focused interventions were then thoroughly and critically analyzed. Despite the heterogeneity with regard to their characteristics, the interventions commonly focused on caregiving matters, were brief in duration, and delivered by non-mental health experts. The efficacy of such interventions was seen as modest.Significance of resultsFamily/caregiver-focused interventions in palliative care remain a matter of concern and more research is needed to identify adequate and effective ways of helping families that face the crisis of terminal illness in the system.

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