Family Caregiver Perception of Hospice Support

Applying Roy's Adaptation Model, the purposes of this study were to explore hospice support of family caregivers in their decision to provide care at home and the relationships between hospice support, coping, and spiritual well-being. Data were collected in home visits of 21 recently bereaved family caregivers of hospice patients. Instruments included a demographic questionnaire, a Hospice Social Support questionnaire, the Jalowiec Coping Scale, the Spiritual Well-Being Scale, and a postbereavement interview. Hospice workers were frequently identified as providing significant emotional support making the caregiver feel highly cared for, respected, and supported. Subjects scored moderately high on the SWB Scale and reported low use of coping strategies. A significant negative correlation was found between reported use of coping strategies and hospice support. Hospice family caregivers rated this support highly as a major factor in making and sustaining the home care decision.