title: Older Adult Spouses with Multiple Chronic Conditions: Challenges, Rewards, and Coping Strategies.
abstract: There is a paucity of research exploring how spouses to older adults with multiple chronic conditions make meaning of their caregiving experience. For this study, we asked: What is the experience of spousal caregivers to persons with multiple chronic conditions? We applied Thorne's interpretive description approach, interviewing 18 spouses who provided a rich description of their caregiving experience; interviews were transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed. Themes were categorized according to challenges encountered, rewards gleaned, and sustaining strategies employed by participants in caregiving to their spouse with multiple chronic conditions. Unique findings relate to the challenges inherent in decision-making within the context of multiple chronic conditions. This article begins to address the gap in the literature regarding the caregiving experience within the context of multiple chronic conditions.
authors.affiliation: College of Nursing,University of Saskatchewan.
authors.forename: Shelley
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Peacock
authors.affiliation: King's College,Western University.
authors.forename: Bharati
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Sethi
authors.affiliation: Aging and Community Health Research Unit,McMaster University.
authors.forename: Allison
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Nursing,University of Alberta.
authors.forename: Wendy
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Duggleby
authors.affiliation: College of Nursing,University of Saskatchewan.
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bayly
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Nursing,University of Alberta.
authors.forename: Jenny
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Swindle
authors.affiliation: Aging and Community Health Research Unit,McMaster University.
authors.forename: Jenny
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ploeg
authors.affiliation: Aging and Community Health Research Unit,McMaster University.
authors.forename: Maureen
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Markle-Reid
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D000071069:Multiple Chronic Conditions / Q000628:therapy*; D036301:Qualitative Research; D055500:Resilience, Psychological; D018454:Spouses / Q000523:psychology*
keywords: aging; description intérpretative; family caregiving; interpretive description; maladies chroniques multiples; multiple chronic conditions; soins familiales; vieillissement