E-Care: E-Caregiver Assistance, Resources, and Education

PURPOSE: We developed a pilot study to test family caregivers' use of a website (E-Careonline) intended to improve caregiving skills & increase knowledge about caregiving for older adults. The site included video & text modules on topics such as: a) task breakdown; b) lifting & transferring; c) preventing falls; and d) identifying & managing depression in the care recipient; and featured e) access to a social worker trained to help manage issues related to caregiving via a message board. DESIGN AND METHODS: Caregivers providing on-going care or assistance to a person aged 60+ were randomly assigned to either the treatment group or a delayed-treatment control group. Treatment group participants were given access to the website, and were asked to visit the site at least twice per week for 3 months and were encouraged to participate on the site's message board. Treatment participants could contact the social worker as often as needed with questions related to caregiving. Caregivers completed baseline and post-test (3 months) assessment to measure improvement in such domains as the Zarit Burden Interview, anxiety (STAI Y-6) depression (GDS), and self-efficacy for caregiving. RESULTS: Fifty-seven caregivers participated in this pilot study. Caregivers were, on average predominately female (78.9% N=45), 61 years, married (70.2% N=40) and Caucasian (75.4% N=43). At follow-up, treatment participants experienced significant improvements (p<.001) in anxiety, depression, and caregiving self-efficacy including the subscales of symptom management and community support services. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that the internet is an effective medium for providing educational skill-building information to caregivers.