Family caregiving skill: development of the concept

TLDR

Families are increasingly expected to deliver complex home care for ill relatives, demanding caregiving knowledge and skill levels that have not been formally conceptualized in nursing. The study aimed to systematically develop the concept of family caregiving skill through qualitative analysis of interviews with cancer patients and their primary caregivers. The authors used open coding and constant comparison to analyze interview data and identify caregiving skill indicators. The study identified 63 indicators across nine core caregiving processes, defined family caregiving skill as the ability to engage effectively and smoothly in these processes, and outlined its properties, providing a foundation for measurement and precise assessment by clinicians. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Res Nurs Health 23:191–203.

Abstract

Families increasingly are expected to provide complex care at home to ill relatives. Such care requires a level of caregiving knowledge and skill unprecedented among lay persons, yet family caregiving skill has never been formally developed as a concept in nursing. The purpose of the study reported here was to develop the concept of family caregiving skill systematically through qualitative analysis of interviews with patients (n = 30) receiving chemotherapy for cancer and their primary family caregivers (n = 29). Open coding and constant comparison constituted the analytic methods. Sixty-three indicators of caregiving skill were identified for nine core caregiving processes. Family caregiving skill was defined as the ability to engage effectively and smoothly in these nine processes. Properties of family caregiving skill also were identified. Conceptualizing skill as a variable and identifying indicators of varying levels of skill provides a basis for measurement and will allow clinicians to more precisely assess family caregiving skill. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Res Nurs Health 23:191–203, 2000