Sources of Meaning in Family Caregivers of Terminally Ill Patients Supported by a Palliative Nursing Care Team – A Naturalistic Three-month Cohort Study

Abstract

Objectives

To identify possible change patterns or robustness in sources of meaning in family caregivers of pre-terminal patients after onset of support at home by an outreach palliative nursing team during a survey period of three months.

Methods

One hundred caregivers of terminally ill patients were included in a prospective observational trial. The Sources of Meaning and Meaning in Life Questionnaire (SoMe) was administered at four points of measurement: T₀ (immediately before onset of palliative care); T₁ (one week after T₀); T₂ (one month after T₀); T₃ (three months after T₀). Descriptive statistics, random effects regression analyses; multivariate linear and quadratic regression models were performed for the full (n = 100) as well as for the reduced sample (n = 24).

Results

Growth curve analyses reveal significant parabolic changes for the dimension “order” and for the subscales “social commitment”, “tradition”, “morality”, and “fun”. All other dimensions or subscales remained stable during the time of the study. Cross-sectional multivariate regression models (T₀) showed negative associations of some dimensions with patients’ age and psychological burden of the family caregiver while psychological burden of patients was found to be positively associated with some dimensions. No significant effects of interaction variables with time (linear and quadratic).

Conclusions

With few exceptions, family carers seem to keep a stable sense of meaning in life during the final stage of their relatives’ terminal illness. Particular associations between sources of meaning and age of patients as well as psychological burden both of patients and carers have to be taken into consideration in support planning.

Disclosure of interest

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.