Non-professional Caregivers' Experience of Occupational Performance on the Part of Relatives with Dementia: Implications for Caregiver Program in Occupational Therapy

Abstract

The aim of this study was to describe how non-professional caregivers understood and responded to the problems of everyday life in their interaction with a family member suffering from dementia disease. Data were obtained through interviews. The analysis was performed using a comparative qualitative approach. The findings demonstrated how the caregivers' strategies for handling everyday problems varied and reflected a personal understanding of the relative's life history. On basis of these findings and previous research, the implications for therapeutic interventions by occupational therapists were presented and discussed.