Abstract
BackgroundCaregiving is a global phenomenon which is bound to increase in tandem with the aging population worldwide. Stroke is a condition common in older people that requires complex caregiving necessitating provision of adequate support to the caregivers. Past literature consists of limited accounts of types and organization of support arrangements needed by different caregivers. We aimed to describe the support system of caregivers of stroke survivors in Singapore, highlighting differences across the different caregiver identities (i.e. spouse, adult-child, etc.).MethodsWe conducted a qualitative descriptive study in the community setting involving 61 purposively sampled and recruited stroke survivors and caregivers. Semi-structured interviews were conducted, and transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis.ResultsOur findings were summarized across the following 4 themes: 1) cultural influence and caregiving; 2) caregiver support system with the following sub-themes: 2.1) dyadic caregiver support type, 2.2) extended caregiver support type, 2.3.) distributed caregiver support type and 2.4) empowering caregiver support type; 3) breaks in care of stroke survivor and 4) complex relationship dynamics. We operationalized the caregiver support system as comprising of type, people and activities that enable the caregiver to participate in caregiving activities sustainably. While spouse caregivers preferred dyadic and extended support systems positioning themselves in a more central caregiving role, adult-child caregivers preferred distributed support system involving family members with paid caregivers playing a more central role.ConclusionsOur findings highlight caregiver identity as a surrogate for the differences in the caregiver support systems. Practical implications include imparting relationship-building skills to the stroke survivor-caregiver dyads to sustain dyadic support system and educating clinicians to include differences in caregiving arrangements of stroke survivors in practising family-centred care.
Highlights
The proportion of the world’s population over 60 years will double to 22% in 2050, with an absolute number of 2 billion people over 60 years [1]
While the themes of caregiver support system and cultural influence in caregiving were coded both deductively and inductively, the themes of breaks in the care of stroke survivor and complex relationship dynamics were coded inductively and emerged from the data
While the primary focus of the current manuscript was on describing the support system diversity of caregivers of stroke survivors, three additional themes were included to provide a comprehensive context within which such support systems exist
Summary
The proportion of the world’s population over 60 years will double to 22% in 2050, with an absolute number of 2 billion people over 60 years [1]. Singapore is expected to follow a similar trend of increasing aging population [2]. Tyagi et al BMC Geriatr (2021) 21:594 bound to increase in tandem with the aging population worldwide. Stroke is a condition common in older people that requires complex caregiving, considering about half of the stroke survivors require some form of assistance with activities of daily living [4]. Caregiving is a global phenomenon which is bound to increase in tandem with the aging population worldwide. Stroke is a condition common in older people that requires complex caregiving necessitating provision of adequate support to the caregivers. We aimed to describe the support system of caregivers of stroke survi‐ vors in Singapore, highlighting differences across the different caregiver identities (i.e. spouse, adult-child, etc.)
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