Family caregivers' perceived communication self-efficacy with physicians

Family-centered health care requires successful communication between patient, family caregivers, and healthcare providers. Among all providers, physicians are most likely to interact with caregivers. Using the Family Caregiver Communication Typology, this study examined perceived communication self-efficacy with physicians among four types of caregivers: Manager, Partner, Carrier, and Lone.

A cross-sectional online survey included the Family Communication Typology Tool, Communication Perceived Self-Efficacy Scale, the Caregiver Quality of Life-Revised Index, and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-2) questionnaire.

An online survey of 220 family caregivers currently caring for an adult family member revealed significant differences in communication self-efficacy among family caregiver communication types, revealing that Partner caregivers have the highest perceived communication self-efficacy, and that for some caregiver types, higher perceived communication self-efficacy is associated with certain quality of life dimensions.

Differences in communication self-efficacy with physicians among the four caregiver communication types (Manager, Partner, Carrier, and Lone) provide further evidence that the typology represents variance in caregiver communication abilities. Development of future medical curricula targeting communication skill training should include an overview of the typology and communication strategies as these may increase effective communication between physicians and caregivers.