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Impact of the Caring for Aging Relatives Group program: an evaluation.
S Kaasalainen1, D Craig, D Wells
1McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Public Health Nursing (Boston, Mass.)
|June 7, 2000
Summary
Caregiver support programs can help by providing valuable information and social support, positively impacting morale for those caring for older adults. Further research is needed to understand attendance factors and specific support received.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Psychology
- Public Health
Background:
- Caregiver support programs aim to reduce stress in individuals caring for elderly relatives.
- Most existing programs lack formal evaluation of their effectiveness.
- This study formally evaluates a specific caregiver support program.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the impact of a caregiver support program on participants' morale, social support, and information levels.
- To determine the relationship between morale, social support, and information among caregivers.
- To evaluate the perceived usefulness of the Caring for Aging Relatives Group (CARG) program.
Main Methods:
- A quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design was employed.
- Convenience samples of 23 female caregivers were divided into intervention and comparison groups.
- Measures included morale, social support, and information acquisition.
Main Results:
- A positive correlation was found between morale and social support for all caregivers.
- In the comparison group, morale and information were positively related at both pretest and posttest.
- The intervention group showed a significant increase in information scores post-program (t = 2.79, p = 0.01).
Conclusions:
- The caregiver support program partially demonstrated usefulness, with participants gaining information and maintaining morale.
- Caregivers perceived the CARG program as a valuable source of social support.
- Further research should explore factors influencing program attendance and the nature of social support received.