Intersecting challenges: Cancer caregivers' experiences during COVID-19
Charlotte R Weiss1,2, Rachel Johnson-Koenke2, Karen B Hirschman1
1School of Nursing, NewCourtland Center for Transitions and Health, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Background:
The COVID-19 pandemic introduced a landscape that contributed to many unknowns and unmet needs among cancer family caregivers and their care recipients.
Aim:
This secondary analysis qualitative study aimed to explore cancer family caregiver narratives for the societal and institutional contexts of caring for a person with advanced cancer during the early years of COVID-19.
Design:
Narrative inquiry was used in the parent study to co-create caregiver narratives.
Methods:
Narrative thematic analysis was used to identify themes of COVID-19 from five cancer caregiver narratives.
Results:
Thematic threads of COVID-19 were identified as short stories of tension woven throughout the caregiver narratives: advocacy for quality healthcare, the need to protect their person from the virus and medical/institutional disregard, financial strain, lack of social support, and the long goodbye. The findings further illustrate how COVID-19 and cancer intersect to influence a caregiver's healthcare experience and well-being.
Conclusion:
Family-centered care strategies and policy changes are needed to better meet the complex needs of cancer caregivers during a pandemic and beyond.
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