Hope against hope: exploring the hopes and challenges of rural female caregivers of persons with advanced cancer

Abstract

BackgroundThis paper focuses on the qualitative component of a study evaluating a hope intervention, entitled Living with Hope Program (LWHP), designed to foster hope in female caregivers of family members living with advanced cancer. The purpose of this research is to share, in the form of a story, the experiences of rural female caregivers caring for family members with advanced cancer, focusing on what fosters their hope. Hope is a psychosocial and spiritual resource that has been found to help family caregivers live through difficult transitions and challenges.MethodsTwenty-three participants from rural Western Canada completed daily journal entries documenting their hopes and challenges. Cortazzi’s (2001) method of narrative analysis was used to analyze the data, which was then transcribed into a narrative entitled ‘hope against hope.’ResultsThe journal entries highlighted: the caregivers’ hopes and what fostered their hope; the various challenges of caregiving; self-care strategies, and; their emotional journey. Hope was integrated throughout their entire experience, and ‘hope against hope’ describes how hope persists even when there is no hope for a cure.ConclusionsThis research contributes to the assessment of caregiver interventions that impact hope and quality of life, while illustrating the value of a narrative approach to both research and practice. Journaling may be particularly valuable for rural caregivers who are isolated, and may lack direct professional and peer support. There is an opportunity for health professionals and other providers to foster a relationship of trust with family caregivers, in which their story can be told openly and where practitioners pay closer attention to the psychosocial needs of caregivers.

Transitions as experienced by persons in palliative care circumstances and their families – a qualitative meta-synthesis

“…Awaiting imminent death is taxing for persons with palliative care needs and their family members [ 5 ]. Anticipating the future is combined with many feelings such as uncertainty, fear and loneliness [ 5 , 42 ]. Further research will be necessary in order to address the issue of offering adequate support to family members and persons with palliative care needs.…”

Living With A Person Who Has Dementia: A Study of Phenomenology

“…Williams bakım vermeyi; bakıma muhtaç birisine fiziksel, zihinsel, duygusal, sosyal ve ekonomik yönden bakımını sağlama olarak tanımlamıştır. [15] Başka bir tanımlama da ise bakım verme, ruhsal sağlık sorunu deneyimleyen bireye bakım, yardım, sosyal destek ve bilgi verme olarak açıklanmaktadır. Bakım veren kişi hastanın bakımını yapmak ya da gözlemlemekten sorumludur.…”

“…[11] Demanslı bireylere bakım verenlerin yaşadığı güçlüklerin araştırıldığı bir çalışmada bakım verenlerin çoğunlukla baş etme yöntemi olarak dua etmeyi tercih ettikleri belirtilmiştir. [10,15] Katılımcılar, bakım verirken yaşadığı zorluklarla başet-me konusunda çoğunlukla aile üyelerinden destek alınması gerektiğini belirtmiştir. Toplumda, bakım verenler, genellikle takdir edilmemekte ve çevresindekilerden yeterli destek alamamaktadır.…”

“…[6] Yapılan başka bir çalışmada sosyal desteği çok olan kişilerin daha az oranda psikolojik sıkıntı yaşadığı, çok stresli olaylar karşısında bile psikolojik ya da fiziksel sağlıklarının bozulma olasılığının dü-şük olduğu belirlenmiştir. [15] Bu yüzden bakım veren kişilere, bakım vermeyi bir iş olarak kabul etmesi yönünde bilgilendirme ve destek sağlanmalıdır. Bireyler, bu durumu iş olarak kabul ettiklerinde aile üyelerinden destek almayı talep edebilir ve zaman zaman kendilerine vakit ayırabilirler.…”

A Novel Narrative E-Writing Intervention (NeW-I) for Parents of Children with Chronic Life-Threatening Illnesses: Protocol for an Open-Label Randomized Controlled Trial

“…Such therapist-facilitated e-platforms are increasingly used for brief and effective psychotherapy for a range of conditions including depression, anxiety, and stress [31][32][33][34]. Moreover, when internet-based platforms use writing as the modality for emotional expression and reflection, efficacy is superior, as compared to audio/video mediums [35]. Finally, the anonymity of an e-writing channel can encourage greater willingness to self-disclose [36,37].…”