Strong Carers, Strong Communities: a cluster randomised controlled trial to improve wellbeing of family carers of older people in remote Aboriginal communities
Introduction: Unpaid carers have a crucial role in supporting older people with cognitive impairment and disability, but their own health and wellbeing are often impacted. There are limited data on how carer strain, depression and empowerment may be improved for carers. Methods: This was a cluste...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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James Cook University
2021-07-01
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| Series: | Rural and Remote Health |
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| Online Access: | https://www.rrh.org.au/journal/article/6078/ |
| _version_ | 1818876442579042304 |
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| author | Dina LoGiudice Cathryn Josif Roslyn Malay Zoë Hyde Melissa Haswell Melissa Lindeman Christopher Etherton-Beer David Atkinson Dawn Bessarab Leon Flicker Kate Smith |
| author_facet | Dina LoGiudice Cathryn Josif Roslyn Malay Zoë Hyde Melissa Haswell Melissa Lindeman Christopher Etherton-Beer David Atkinson Dawn Bessarab Leon Flicker Kate Smith |
| author_sort | Dina LoGiudice |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Introduction: Unpaid carers have a crucial role in supporting older people with cognitive impairment and disability, but their own health and wellbeing are often impacted. There are limited data on how carer strain, depression and empowerment may be improved for carers.
Methods: This was a cluster randomised controlled trial to compare the effect of a carer support program developed with a community-based participatory action research (PAR) approach to the delivery of information sessions to 100 carers of people aged 45 years or more living in four remote Aboriginal communities in Western Australia.
Results: The mean age of carers was 38.3±14.9 years, 76% were female and 77% were children or grandchildren of the care recipient. Carer strain and empowerment measures did not change significantly between baseline and follow-up. A statistically significant decrease in depression scores was observed in the PAR group. However, decreases were observed in both the PAR and control groups, and the change in scores did not differ significantly between groups. Depression scores decreased most in those who had not attended high school. Overall, the proportion of participants meeting criteria for depression decreased from 18.8% at baseline to 8.3% at follow-up.
Conclusion: A carer support program was of equivocal benefit, although this research demonstrates that the wellbeing of carers in remote Aboriginal communities can potentially be markedly improved by outreach strategies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-19T13:42:27Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-11011d69e570415e860be56ea061d283 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1445-6354 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-19T13:42:27Z |
| publishDate | 2021-07-01 |
| publisher | James Cook University |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Rural and Remote Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-11011d69e570415e860be56ea061d2832022-12-21T20:18:58ZengJames Cook UniversityRural and Remote Health1445-63542021-07-012110.22605/RRH6078Strong Carers, Strong Communities: a cluster randomised controlled trial to improve wellbeing of family carers of older people in remote Aboriginal communitiesDina LoGiudice0Cathryn Josif1Roslyn Malay2Zoë Hyde3Melissa Haswell4Melissa Lindeman5Christopher Etherton-Beer6David Atkinson7Dawn Bessarab8Leon Flicker9Kate Smith10Aged Care, Melbourne Health, Melbourne, Australia, and University Of Melbourne, Parkville, Melbourne, AustraliaWA Centre for Health and Ageing, Medical School, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia; and Majarlin Kimberley Centre for Remote Health, The University of Notre Dame, Broome, AustraliaWA Centre for Health and Ageing, Medical School, University of Western Australia, Perth, AustraliaWA Centre for Health and Ageing, Medical School, University of Western Australia, Perth, AustraliaSchool of Public Health and Social Work, Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove, Queensland, Australia. Present address: Office of the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Indigenous Strategy and Services), University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2050, AustraliaCollege of Nursing & Midwifery, Charles Darwin University, Alice Springs, NT 0870, Australia; and College of Medicine & Public Health (adjunct), Flinders University, Alice Springs, NT 0870, AustraliaWA Centre for Health and Ageing, Medical School, University of Western Australia, Perth, AustraliaRural Clinical School of WA, University of Western Australia and University of Notre Dame, AustraliaCentre for Aboriginal Medical and Dental Health, University of Western Australia, Perth, AustraliaWA Centre for Health and Ageing, Medical School, University of Western Australia, Perth, AustraliaCentre for Aboriginal Medical and Dental Health, University of Western Australia, Perth, AustraliaIntroduction: Unpaid carers have a crucial role in supporting older people with cognitive impairment and disability, but their own health and wellbeing are often impacted. There are limited data on how carer strain, depression and empowerment may be improved for carers. Methods: This was a cluster randomised controlled trial to compare the effect of a carer support program developed with a community-based participatory action research (PAR) approach to the delivery of information sessions to 100 carers of people aged 45 years or more living in four remote Aboriginal communities in Western Australia. Results: The mean age of carers was 38.3±14.9 years, 76% were female and 77% were children or grandchildren of the care recipient. Carer strain and empowerment measures did not change significantly between baseline and follow-up. A statistically significant decrease in depression scores was observed in the PAR group. However, decreases were observed in both the PAR and control groups, and the change in scores did not differ significantly between groups. Depression scores decreased most in those who had not attended high school. Overall, the proportion of participants meeting criteria for depression decreased from 18.8% at baseline to 8.3% at follow-up. Conclusion: A carer support program was of equivocal benefit, although this research demonstrates that the wellbeing of carers in remote Aboriginal communities can potentially be markedly improved by outreach strategies.https://www.rrh.org.au/journal/article/6078/AboriginalageingAustraliacarercommunity based participatory action researchdepression |
| spellingShingle | Dina LoGiudice Cathryn Josif Roslyn Malay Zoë Hyde Melissa Haswell Melissa Lindeman Christopher Etherton-Beer David Atkinson Dawn Bessarab Leon Flicker Kate Smith Strong Carers, Strong Communities: a cluster randomised controlled trial to improve wellbeing of family carers of older people in remote Aboriginal communities Rural and Remote Health Aboriginal ageing Australia carer community based participatory action research depression |
| title | Strong Carers, Strong Communities: a cluster randomised controlled trial to improve wellbeing of family carers of older people in remote Aboriginal communities |
| title_full | Strong Carers, Strong Communities: a cluster randomised controlled trial to improve wellbeing of family carers of older people in remote Aboriginal communities |
| title_fullStr | Strong Carers, Strong Communities: a cluster randomised controlled trial to improve wellbeing of family carers of older people in remote Aboriginal communities |
| title_full_unstemmed | Strong Carers, Strong Communities: a cluster randomised controlled trial to improve wellbeing of family carers of older people in remote Aboriginal communities |
| title_short | Strong Carers, Strong Communities: a cluster randomised controlled trial to improve wellbeing of family carers of older people in remote Aboriginal communities |
| title_sort | strong carers strong communities a cluster randomised controlled trial to improve wellbeing of family carers of older people in remote aboriginal communities |
| topic | Aboriginal ageing Australia carer community based participatory action research depression |
| url | https://www.rrh.org.au/journal/article/6078/ |
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