How well do family caregivers cope after caring for a relative with advanced disease and how can health professionals enhance their support?

BACKGROUND: Support for families during a person's advanced disease and also into the bereavement period is a major component of palliative care. However, because of the gaps in bereavement research in this area, there is a lack of evidence-based direction for health professionals.
PURPOSE: This study sought to explore family caregiver perceptions of their relative's death and assess how well they were coping. Caregivers were also asked to identify which health professional strategies helped them prepare for and respond to their relative's death.
METHODS: Two months after their relative's death primary family caregivers (n=45) of patients with advanced cancer completed a structured interview and were also assessed to determine if they were confronted by traumatic grief.
RESULTS: Seven percent of caregivers were confronted by traumatic grief; most caregivers perceived they were coping reasonably well and could identify positive outcomes related to their experience. Caregivers noted the significant benefits of receiving comprehensive information to prepare them for the future and expressed appreciation for the support provided by specialist palliative care services.
CONCLUSIONS: There is a large body of literature that highlights the negative consequences of being a family caregiver to a person with advanced disease. The sample population in this study, however, seemed to be reasonably well functioning; the results of the study were therefore somewhat surprising. A research agenda and key clinical implications are outlined in order to aid direction in targeting bereavement interventions.