Academic Center for General Practice, Department of Public Health and Primary Care, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
Public Health Psychiatry, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
Health Soc Care Community. 2022 Jul;30(4):1514-1529. doi: 10.1111/hsc.13482. Epub 2021 Jul 19.
Increasingly, informal caregivers in Belgium care in group for an older patient. This study aimed to decrease the caregiver burden and to increase the well-being of caregivers and patients by supporting the needs of informal care groups of older patients (≥70 years).
Through an online self-management tool, the groups were supported to make informed choices concerning the care for the older patient, taking into account the standards, values, concerns and needs of every caregiver and patient. A pre-post study was performed.
Although patients and caregivers considered the self-management tool as useful and supportive, no clear evidence for decreased caregiver burden was found. There was a positive trend in group characteristics such as the distribution of tasks, communication and prevalence of conflicts. Caregivers also stated that they took more time for themselves, had less feelings of guilt and experienced less barriers to ask help.
Tailor-made support of informal care groups starts with facilitating and guiding a process to achieve consent within the group to optimise the care for the patient and also for the caregivers. With a shared vision and supported decisions, caregivers can enter into conversations with the professional caregiver to coordinate adjusted support regarding the care needs.
在比利时，越来越多的非正式护理人员为一名老年患者提供团体护理。本研究旨在通过支持老年患者（≥70 岁）非正式护理团体的需求，减轻护理人员负担，提高护理人员和患者的幸福感。
通过在线自我管理工具，支持团体根据每个护理人员和患者的标准、价值观、关注点和需求，为老年患者做出明智的护理选择。进行了一项前后研究。
尽管患者和护理人员认为自我管理工具很有用且具有支持性，但没有发现护理人员负担明显减轻的证据。团体特征（如任务分配、沟通和冲突发生率）呈积极趋势。护理人员还表示，他们为自己留出了更多时间，内疚感减少，寻求帮助的障碍也减少。
为非正式护理团体提供定制化的支持，首先要促进和指导团体内部达成共识的过程，以优化对患者和护理人员的护理。通过共同的愿景和支持的决策，护理人员可以与专业护理人员进行对话，协调调整后的护理需求支持。
