Family caregivers' perceived communication self-efficacy with physicians

Area of Science:

• Health communication
• Caregiver support
• Physician-patient-caregiver relationships

Background:

• Family-centered care necessitates effective communication among patients, family caregivers, and healthcare providers.
• Physicians frequently interact with family caregivers, making their communication crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine perceived communication self-efficacy with physicians across four distinct family caregiver types: Manager, Partner, Carrier, and Lone.
• To investigate the relationship between caregiver communication types and their self-efficacy in communicating with physicians.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional online survey was administered to 220 family caregivers.
• Validated instruments included the Family Communication Typology Tool, Communication Perceived Self-Efficacy Scale, Caregiver Quality of Life-Revised Index, and GAD-2.

Main Results:

• Significant differences in communication self-efficacy were found among the four caregiver types.
• Partner caregivers reported the highest perceived communication self-efficacy with physicians.
• Higher communication self-efficacy correlated with specific quality of life dimensions for certain caregiver types.

Conclusions:

• The Family Caregiver Communication Typology effectively differentiates caregiver communication abilities.
• Medical education should incorporate this typology and communication strategies to enhance physician-caregiver interactions.
• Improved communication can positively impact caregiver quality of life.