'Indirect' illness experiences of family caregivers of Chronic and Old Adults: a qualitative study.

The illness of chronic and older adults affects families, both in terms of the physical, emotional, relational and social impact and in terms of family functioning and the alteration of family dynamics. This study aimed to understand, in-depth, the experiences of family caregivers of chronic and elderly patients. A qualitative study with narrative interviews with caregivers of chronic and older adults was carried out. Twenty-four interviews were conducted, with 23 women and one man. The caregivers were all the patients' close relatives. The main results are: (i) The prevalence of the female gender in the caregiver role; (ii) The caregiver experiences: an 'indirect' illness; (iii) The family changes roles, responsibilities and relationships; (iv) Support needs emerge, especially of a social, family, work and economic nature;(v) Resources are also activated, linked to the presence or absence of self-care. The illness directly impacts the primary caregiver, but it has repercussions on the entire family unit, which may activate coping strategies or break down. It is crucial to accurately highlight the new family dynamics in order to find suitable solutions to support the family in which a chronic and elderly patient lives, underscoring the importance of the work in this area.
We inserted dataset of qualitative data (interviews' codes). These data are a part of all the qualitative data generated by the analysis of the interviews in the study described above.