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Life orientation in Finnish family caregivers' of persons with Alzheimer's disease: A diary study
Author(s) -
Välimäki Tarja,
VehviläinenJulkunen Katri,
Pietilä AnnaMaija,
Koivisto Anne
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
nursing and health sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.563
H-Index - 47
eISSN - 1442-2018
pISSN - 1441-0745
DOI - 10.1111/j.1442-2018.2012.00721.x
Subject(s) - family caregivers , disease , psychology , orientation (vector space) , alzheimer's disease , gerontology , future orientation , dementia , medicine , clinical psychology , social psychology , geometry , mathematics , pathology
Family caregivers provide the majority of home care of people with A lzheimer's disease. In this study, we discuss family caregivers' life orientation and changes in life orientation during the first year after the diagnosis of A lzheimer's disease. Family caregivers' unstructured diaries ( n = 83), of the first six months after diagnosis (years 2002–2004), were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Two core themes emerged from the data analysis: the meaning of the onset of A lzheimer's disease for the lives of family caregivers, and restructuring life in its entirety. Family caregivers face challenges in their life orientation after the onset of their family members' A lzheimer's disease. Their personal milieu, familial cohesion, and conception of the future consequentially change. They face multiple challenges in the process of becoming caregivers. In this study, it was revealed that the process starts before the diagnosis of A lzheimer's disease and has an impact on their future. We conclude that family caregivers' well‐being should be assessed at the time of the diagnosis of A lzheimer's disease.