Caring for a Relative With Dementia in Long-Term Care During COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic created unique stressors for caregivers of persons with dementia living in long-term care (LTC) facilities. The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify the challenges associated with caring for a relative with dementia in LTC during the pandemic, as well as resources, strategies, and practices caregivers found helpful in coping with COVID-19. This study was conducted within the context of an ongoing randomized controlled trial of a psychosocial intervention to support caregivers. Open-ended survey responses (n = 125) and semistructured interviews with a subset of the sample (n = 20) collected between June 2020 and June 2021 explored caregivers' experiences during COVID-19. Participants included 125 family caregivers of persons with dementia living in residential LTC. Thematic analysis was used to identify themes capturing caregivers' experiences. In addition to concerns about COVID-19 infection, participants reported key challenges such as the difficulty of maintaining contact with relatives because of visiting restrictions, lack of information about relatives' health and well-being, worries about overburdened LTC staff, impossibility of returning relatives home from the LTC facility, and fears about relatives dying alone. Participants also identified resources, strategies, and practices that they perceived as helpful, including effective infection prevention within the LTC facility, good communication with LTC staff, and creative strategies for connecting with their relatives. This qualitative analysis informs recommendations for practice within LTC facilities, as well as supports that may help caregivers manage stressful situations in the context of COVID-19. Vaccination and testing protocols should be implemented to maximize family caregivers' opportunities for in-person contact with relatives in LTC, as alternative visiting modalities were often unsatisfactory or unfeasible. Informing caregivers regularly about individual residents' needs and status is crucial. Supports for bereaved caregivers should address complicated grief and feelings of loss.

Mitchell LL ，Albers EA ，Birkeland RW ，Peterson CM ，Stabler H ，Horn B ，Cha J ，Drake A ，Gaugler JE ... -  《-》

Hope and connection: the experience of family caregivers of persons with dementia living in a long term care facility.

Duggleby W ，Schroeder D ，Nekolaichuk C 《BMC Geriatrics》

Effectiveness of interventions to improve family-staff relationships in the care of people with dementia in residential aged care: a systematic review protocol.

Nguyen M ，Pachana NA ，Beattie E ，Fielding E ，Ramis MA ... -  《-》

Disruptions in Relational Continuity: The Impact of Pandemic Public Health Measures on Families in Long-Term Care.

Cooke HA ，Wu SA ，Bourbonnais A ，Baumbusch J ... -  《-》

Caring for a Relative With Dementia in Long-Term Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Prospective Longitudinal Study.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic introduced unprecedented threats and disruptions for caregivers of people with dementia living in residential long-term care (LTC) facilities. Qualitative and cross-sectional studies have reported substantial negative effects of the pandemic on dementia caregivers' well-being, but little to no prospective research has examined the impact of COVID-19 on caregiver well-being using pre-pandemic assessments. The present study used longitudinal data from an ongoing randomized controlled trial of a psychosocial intervention to support family caregivers whose relatives had entered LTC. Data collection began in 2016 and continued through 2021. Caregivers (N = 132) completed up to 7 assessments measuring their depressive symptoms, self-efficacy, and burden. Latent growth curve models testing preregistered hypotheses revealed no significant effects of the pandemic on caregiver outcomes on average, though caregivers varied in terms of individual intercepts and slopes. Furthermore, factors such as caregiver-care recipient relationship closeness, care recipient's COVID-19 infection status, and caregivers' ratings of LTC facilities' COVID-19 policies did not significantly moderate trajectories of well-being. Findings highlight the heterogeneity of caregivers' experiences during the pandemic, and suggest caution when interpreting cross-sectional findings on the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on caregiver well-being and distress.

Mitchell LL ，Horn B ，Stabler H ，Birkeland RW ，Peterson CM ，Albers EA ，Gaugler JE ... -  《-》