The following is a summary of “Supporting family carers in general practice: a scoping review of clinical guidelines and recommendations,” published in the November 2023 issue of Primary Care by Cronin, et al.
More and more family caregivers are giving unpaid care in public places. In turn, this makes things harder because family caregivers may experience bad physical and mental health results, which can affect both them and the people they care for. General Practitioners (GPs), who are very important in community-based care, are in a great position to find caregivers, evaluate them, and connect them with resources. However, there needs to be more research regarding giving them the right advice and tools to do this job. For a study, researchers sought to look at clinical standards and suggestions for GPs to help them do their job as family caregivers. In line with Arksey and O’Malley’s approach, this was done by a team of people from different fields.
Between September and November 2020, they searched ten peer-reviewed sources and grey literature. The searches turned up 4,651 English-language papers. After removing copies, screening the titles and descriptions, and reading the full texts, 35 met the inclusion standards. Thirty papers were research papers, three were review papers, ten were about tools or guides for general practitioners, one was an essay, and twenty were research studies. The data analysis showed that nine out of ten (90%) rules had some part that dealt with finding, evaluating, and/or directing caregivers. Key methods for finding caregivers say that the best way to do it is with a whole-practice approach that includes the GP, practice staff, and using the right supporting documents. Important gaps in their knowledge regarding the right clinical assessment and evidence-based routes for referral were pointed out.
The study fills in a big gap in the research by putting together all the important data they have now on clinical guidelines for general practitioners (GPs) to help family caregivers. The guidelines include ways to find caregivers, measure them, and possible transfer or signposting routes. But there needs to be more openness about the data that is already out there, and a lot more study needs to be done to see how well clinical standards work and how often they should be used in general care.
Source: bmcprimcare.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12875-023-02188-1
