Abstract
(1) Background: When living with one or more long term conditions (LTCs), both the patient and the family experience the impact of the condition at different levels. The family’s needs and perceptions should be considered in the process of caring for people with LTCs. The aim of this review is to understand “the process of living with LTCs” from a family perspective. (2) Methods: A scoping review and narrative synthesis were conducted using a systematic methodology in MEDLINE, CINAHL, Web of Science and PsycINFO, in English and Spanish, including evidence from 2018. (3) Results: A total of 28 articles were included in the review. Acceptance, coping, self-management, integration, and adjustment were key attributes in the process of living with LTCs from the perspective of family caregivers that interrelated in a dynamic way through different mechanisms: being aware of the changing situation, personal networks, information and education, personal conditions, attitude to life and communication. (4) Conclusions: The five attributes that comprise living with LTCs from the perspective of the family caregiver are closely connected of to those of patients living with LTCs; however, self-management and integration have a different meaning and application.
Highlights
Population aging is the most important demographic phenomenon of recent decades, producing changes in social and epidemiological patterns [1]
This review focused on family carers of people with long-term conditions (LTCs), our findings are applicable to dementia and fragility management [10]
The five attributes that comprise living with LTCs from the perspective of the family caregiver are related to those of patients living with LTC
Summary
Population aging is the most important demographic phenomenon of recent decades, producing changes in social and epidemiological patterns [1]. The vision of LTCs has evolved over the years, as a result of the development of different countries and the social and health transformation. LTCs contribute approximately 60% of the total 56.5 million reported deaths worldwide and approximately 46% of the global burden of disease and cost to health systems [2,4,5]. With a rapidly aging global population, the demands on health services to address disability outcomes, which increase with age, will require policy makers to anticipate these changes [4]. As disability becomes an increasingly important component of the disease burden and a larger component of healthcare expenditure, new strategies are needed to improve care for people with LTCs and their family caregivers [1,4,5,6]. Patients and family members live with one or more LTCs for many years because living with an LTC is an individual concern, and a family affair [7,8,9,10]
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