Knowledge of and Barriers to Pain Management in Caregivers of Cancer Patients Receiving Homecare

Abstract

Cancer treatment is increasingly being provided in outpatient settings, requiring many of the responsibilities for patient care to be undertaken by family caregivers. Pain is one of the most frequent and distressing symptoms experienced by cancer patients and is a primary concern for the family caregiver. Caregivers struggle with many issues that lead to inadequate management of cancer pain. The purpose of this study was to determine pain management knowledge and examine concerns about reporting pain and using analgesics in a sample of primary family caregivers of cancer patients receiving homecare. The Barriers Questionnaire and the Family Pain Questionnaire were administered to 46 primary caregivers. Between 46% and 94% of the caregivers reported having at least some agreement with the various concerns that are barriers to reporting pain and using analgesics, and up to 15% reported having strong agreement. The areas of greatest concern were about opioid-related side effects, fears of addiction, and the belief that pain meant disease progression. Results showed that caregivers with higher pain management knowledge had significantly fewer barriers to cancer pain management, supporting the importance of increasing caregiver's knowledge of management of cancer pain.