Assessing family function: older adults vs. care nurses: a cross-sectional comparative study

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Family Studies
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Aging in place necessitates understanding family dynamics for quality elder care.
• Family function significantly impacts the well-being of older adults receiving home care.
• Assessing family dynamics is vital for personalized and effective home care strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate family function among older adults receiving home care.
• To determine the efficacy of the General Function of Family Assessment Device (FAD-GF) in assessing family function.
• To explore the concordance between older adults' and nurses' perceptions of family function.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional study involving 53 older adults (≥65 years) and 4 home care nurses.
• Utilized the General Function of Family Assessment Device (FAD-GF) for self-assessment of family resources.
• Correlated assessments between older adults and home care nurses.

Main Results:

• Only 5.7% of older adults reported good family function.
• Strong correlations observed between nurse and older adult assessments of family function.
• No disparities noted in 'problem solving,' 'communication,' and 'affective responsiveness' between patient and nurse evaluations.

Conclusions:

• Home care nurses can effectively utilize the FAD-GF to assess family function, especially after six months of care.
• FAD-GF application by nurses aids in identifying family issues and enhancing home care quality.
• Nurse training in FAD-GF application is recommended to improve elder home care outcomes.