At the crossroads: development and evaluation of a dementia caregiver group intervention to assist in driving cessation.
Deciding when an individual with dementia must reduce or stop driving can be a stressful issue for family caregivers. The purpose of this study was to develop a group intervention to assist these caregivers with driving issues and to provide a preliminary evaluation of the comparative effectiveness of this At the Crossroads intervention. Participants were randomized to one of three arms: (1) active intervention (four 2-hour manualized educational/support group meetings; n = 31); (2) written materials only (participants received written materials after a pretest; n = 23); and (3)control (participants received written materials after a posttest; n = 12).Participants were administered a battery of self-report and interview-based questionnaires at baseline and again 2 months later. At follow-up, the active intervention group scored significantly better than both other groups on key outcome variables, including self-efficacy, communication, and preparedness. The At the Crossroads caregiver intervention appears to effectively provide education and support needed for caregivers to address driving-related issues with their loved ones.
Stern
Robert A
RA
Department of Neurology, Alzheimer's Disease Clinical and Research Program, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118-2526, USA. bobstern@bu.edu
D'Ambrosio
Lisa A
LA
Mohyde
Maureen
M
Carruth
Anastasia
A
Tracton-Bishop
Beth
B
Hunter
Jennifer C
JC
Daneshvar
Daniel H
DH
Coughlin
Joseph F
JF
D000368:Aged; D000544:Alzheimer Disease; D001334:Automobile Driving; D017028:Caregivers; D003479:Curriculum; D003657:Decision Making; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012657:Self-Help Groups; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000517:prevention & control; D014481:United States