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Older Adult Spouses with Multiple Chronic Conditions: Challenges, Rewards, and Coping Strategies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 March 2017

Shelley Peacock ,
Bharati Sethi ,
Allison Williams ,
Wendy Duggleby ,
Melanie Bayly ,
Jenny Swindle ,
Jenny Ploeg  and
Maureen Markle-Reid
Shelley Peacock*
Affiliation:
College of Nursing, University of Saskatchewan
Bharati Sethi
Affiliation:
King’s College, Western University
Allison Williams
Affiliation:
Aging and Community Health Research Unit, McMaster University
Wendy Duggleby
Affiliation:
Faculty of Nursing, University of Alberta
Melanie Bayly
Affiliation:
College of Nursing, University of Saskatchewan
Jenny Swindle
Affiliation:
Faculty of Nursing, University of Alberta
Jenny Ploeg
Affiliation:
Aging and Community Health Research Unit, McMaster University
Maureen Markle-Reid
Affiliation:
Aging and Community Health Research Unit, McMaster University
*
†La correspondance et les demandes de tire-à-part doivent être adressées à : / Correspondence and requests for offprints should be sent to: Shelley Peacock, Assistant Professor College of Nursing, University of Saskatchewan Health Sciences Building, E-wing 4340 104 Clinic Place Saskatoon, SK, S7N 2Z4 (shelley.peacock@usask.ca)
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Abstract

There is a paucity of research exploring how spouses to older adults with multiple chronic conditions make meaning of their caregiving experience. For this study, we asked: What is the experience of spousal caregivers to persons with multiple chronic conditions? We applied Thorne’s interpretive description approach, interviewing 18 spouses who provided a rich description of their caregiving experience; interviews were transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed. Themes were categorized according to challenges encountered, rewards gleaned, and sustaining strategies employed by participants in caregiving to their spouse with multiple chronic conditions. Unique findings relate to the challenges inherent in decision-making within the context of multiple chronic conditions. This article begins to address the gap in the literature regarding the caregiving experience within the context of multiple chronic conditions.

Résumé

Un manque de recherche explore comment les conjoints des personnes âgées avec de multiples affections chroniques confèrent un sense à leur expérience de la prestation de soins. Dans le cadre de cette étude, nous avons posé la question suivante: Quelle est l’expérience des aidants naturels pour les personnes atteintes de maladies chroniques multiples? Nous avons appliqué l’approche descriptive interprétative de Thorne, en interviewant 18 conjoints qui ont fourni une riche description de leurs expériences de soins; les entrevues ont été transcrites textuellement et analysées thématiquement. Les thèmes ont été catégorisés en fonction des difficultés rencontrées, des récompenses obtenues et des stratégies de soutien employées par les participants à la prestation de soins pour les conjoints souffrant de maladies chroniques multiples. Les résultats uniques portent sur les défis inhérents à la prise de décision dans le contexte de maladies chroniques multiples. Cet article commence à combler l’écart dans la littérature sur l’expérience des soins dans le contexte de multiples maladies chroniques.

Keywords

agingfamily caregivingmultiple chronic conditionsinterpretive descriptionvieillissementsoins familialesmaladies chroniques multiplesdescription intérpretative
Type
Articles
Information
Canadian Journal on Aging / La Revue canadienne du vieillissement , Volume 36 , Issue 2 , June 2017 , pp. 209 - 222
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Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Association on Gerontology 2017 

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Footnotes

*

The authors thank Maha Kumaran, Health Sciences librarian at the University of Saskatchewan, for providing support with searching the literature. Also, a sincere “thank you” to the participants who so willingly shared their stories.

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