What Male Caregivers of Women With Breast Cancer Want in an Online Intervention: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

The diversity in cancer caregiver responsibilities often leaves caregivers feeling ill-prepared for their role. To inform the development of an online caregiver training intervention, we examined the views of men caring for a woman with breast cancer on intervention mode, timing, and content preferences. Thirteen men participated in a qualitative interview. The findings reveal that an online intervention should include educational content and psychological support, be interactive and personalized, and be available from the point of diagnosis. There is encouraging support for an online caregiver training intervention that covers numerous topics and is available for men to tailor how they use the content based on their individual needs.

A Delphi‐based approach to developing the contents of an online resource, Care Assist, for male caregivers of women with breast cancer

“…Experts also suggested adding information related to hereditary/genetic information and lymphoedema screening which were not suggested by male caregivers in our formative study 10 . Inclusion of hereditary information is supported by a qualitative study of 50 informal caregivers of women with BC (74% were male), which found genetic risk to be a higher priority than self‐care, psychosexual concerns and caring responsibilities 28 .…”

“…29 Experts also suggested adding information related to hereditary/ genetic information and lymphoedema screening which were not suggested by male caregivers in our formative study. 10 � Defining the nature of the relationship between the male caregiver and care-recipient (e.g., partner, son, etc.) so information is better tailored.…”

“…The item relating to managing wounds was initially included in our resource because it was suggested by male caregivers in our formative study 10 and echoed by an integrative review affirming that informal caregivers undertake wound management, yet have limited support and training 31 . However, this item failed to reach consensus, with paradoxical views expressed by participants, including some suggesting that the generic information included could cause harm if it conflicts with more wound‐specific recommendations from the BC nurse.…”

“…Examples of the available support include F2F services which are often not used by male caregivers due to time constraints, longdistance travel, inflexibility with pre-determined session times, and prioritising the patient. 10 Male caregiver coping styles and attitudes such as task-orientation, suppression, avoidance, and preferred use of less formal services, pose additional barriers to accessing F2F services. 11 Online interventions largely overcome these barriers, with studies revealing the acceptability and feasibility of online modalities amongst male caregivers.…”

“…However, current caregiver support is primarily delivered face‐to‐face (F2F), and some of these can be accessed via the Australian Government Carer Gateway and the Cancer Council websites. Examples of the available support include F2F services which are often not used by male caregivers due to time constraints, long‐distance travel, inflexibility with pre‐determined session times, and prioritising the patient 10 . Male caregiver coping styles and attitudes such as task‐orientation, suppression, avoidance, and preferred use of less formal services, pose additional barriers to accessing F2F services 11 …”