Informational needs and related problems of family caregivers of heart failure patients: A qualitative study
Volume 4, Issue 5, Autumn 2014, Pages 1-6
. Masoud Bahrami, . Shahram Etemadifar, . Mohsen Shahriari, . Alireza Khosravi Farsani
Abstract Background: Heart failure is incurable disease and patients often have an ongoing decline once
diagnosed. The symptoms of heart failure may impair the ability of patient to perform activities of
daily living. As heart failure progresses, patients normally increase their reliance on family caregivers.
Aims: This paper explored the informational needs and related problems of family caregivers of heart
failure patients as a part of the findings of a study exploring experiences of family caregivers in the
caregiving situation. Setting and Design: Using a qualitative design, 19 family caregivers from three
educational hospitals in Isfahan, Iran, were recruited. Materials and Methods: Participants were
selected by purposive sampling. Data were collected through semi‑structured interviews. Interviews
were transcribed verbatim and analyzed concurrently. Results: Four major themes were emerged
from the analysis of the transcripts: “Lack of care‑related knowledge”, “Inaccessibility to responsible
source of information”, “Lack of guidance from healthcare team” and “caring with ambiguity due to
unpredictable nature of the disease”. Caregivers believed that they did not have the basic knowledge
related to disease and medication administration. They received little guidance and support from
the health care team on the caregiving roles. They experienced high level of ambiguity and stress
in caregiving tasks due to lack of care‑related knowledge and unpredictable nature of disease.
Conclusion: The care, which was performed by the caregivers of HF patients, is beyond of their
knowledge, capabilities, and resources. Nurses and other healthcare providers can use the findings
of this study to develop effective educational and supportive programs to facilitate these needs.