An interpretative phenomenological analysis of the lived experiences of family members caring for dementia patients

Abstract

Dementia affects an estimated 55 million people globally. The dearth of dementia care facilities and the costs associated with them mean more families are having to shoulder the responsibilities of caring for family members with dementia at home, thus adversely affecting carers’ quality of life. Using a phenomenological approach, this study aimed to explore how family caregivers develop the coping skills necessary to foster the resilience required to care for a family member with dementia. Purposive sampling was employed to recruit eight participants with whom semi-structured interviews were conducted. The analysis revealed five themes that highlighted coping strategies employed by participants that foster resilience, namely (1) positive personality characteristics, (2) an experiential understanding of caregiving, (3) the impact of information, (4) accessing external resources as a key factor, and (5) coping with the impact of caregiving. This study contributes to a better understanding of the experiences of familial dementia caregivers.