"We don't have a back-up plan": an exploration of family contingency planning for emergencies following stroke.
Little research has explored emergency preparedness among families coping with stroke. In this longitudinal qualitative study, we explored contingency caregiving planning by interviewing (N = 18) family caregivers providing care for a stroke survivor at home during the first 6 months post-discharge from the hospital. Emergent themes showed most families did not have a concrete "back-up plan" for a crisis or disaster situation involving the primary caregiver being unable to provide care. Furthermore, they assumed formal respite services or long-term care would be available should the need arise. Despite increased awareness over time, most caregivers had not devised contingency plans at 6 months.
Interdisciplinary School of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. tosulliv@uottawa.ca
Tracey
T
O'Sullivan
Andrea
A
Ghazzawi
Agatha
A
Stanek
Louise
L
Lemyre
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D004189:Disaster Planning; D005190:Family; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008134:Long-Term Care; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009864:Ontario; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012144:Respite Care; D012944:Social Support; D020521:Stroke