Qualitative exploration of emotional and social changes from diagnosis to bereavement for spousal caregivers of persons with dementia.

ABSTRACT: OBJECTIVES:To understand how bereaved spousal caregivers of persons with dementia perceive and respond to changes over the course of their spouse's disease, from diagnosis into bereavement. DESIGN:Qualitative interview study with convenience sampling and thematic analysis approach. PARTICIPANTS:Participants included eight women and two men (n=10) who had been spousal caregivers for a person with dementia prior to his/her death. Participants were older adults who self-reported good health and were bereaved longer than a year. SETTING:Data collected in a small Canadian prairie city between fall 2014 and winter 2015. FINDINGS:Two overarching themes were developed as important components of participants' caregiving journey: emotional reactions to change and variation in social connectedness th

SUBMITTER: Gibson K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6773340 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature