Implementation of the 'Caring for Someone with Cancer' booklet
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Supporting Family Carers in Delivery of Practical Care for Patients at Home towards the End of Life: An Implementation Study (Phase II)
IRAS ID
202610
Contact name
Amy Mathieson
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
The University of Manchester
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 7 months, 30 days
Research summary
The majority of people die in acute care, although most prefer to be cared for and die at home. Family carers are crucial to enabling this preference. Interventions offering practical information to prepare carers for this role are required. Luker and colleagues developed and evaluated such an intervention: Caring for Someone with Cancer booklet. The booklet received positive responses from family caregivers and district nurses, but raised questions regarding how it should be implemented, suggesting further feasibility work. The processes surrounding the delivery of the booklet, and possible guided learning are unknown. There is therefore a need for a qualitative study to explore these issues and develop the intervention further.
So far, we have explored how the booklet has been used to date, by a large Community Trust involved in its development. We would now like to work in partnership with care home staff and community nursing teams, to actively implement the booklet. One care home and a community nursing team from a Community Trust, both within the same area of Greater Manchester, will participate. Nurses and care home staff will be encouraged to use the booklet with family caregivers, over approximately 6 months. The researcher will conduct semi-structured interviews with members of staff throughout this period to explore how it has been used, and barriers and facilitators to its use. Observations will also be made and family carers’ feedback will be sought, to explore the booklet’s usefulness within a care home setting. Regular meetings with the researcher and members of staff who have used the booklet, with be held to discuss challenges to using the booklet and how to overcome these. Analysis will explore the work required to integrate the booklet into routine practice and the factors which may have an impact upon its successful adoption. By doing so, we are hoping to make recommendations on how it can be implemented elsewhere. A ‘toolkit’ will be produced to guide the implementation within other nursing teams and, if proven successful, further care homes. By encouraging nurses and member of care home staff to use the booklet, we are hoping that more family carers of end of life care patients can be supported within the role. By providing this support, more end of life care patients may be cared for and possibly die at home, while maintaining their family carers’ own health and well-being.
REC name
Yorkshire & The Humber - South Yorkshire Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
16/YH/0202
Date of REC Opinion
6 May 2016
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion