Rede de apoio e necessidades educacionais frente ao cuidado familiar de idosos dependentes: uma contribuição para enfermagem.

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the support network and educational needs considering the family care of dependent elderly people in Coari , a small town in the state of Amazonas. This is a descriptive cross-sectional study with quantitative and qualitative approach in which the form and Katz index were applied to 76 family caregivers of dependent elderly people registered in the 11 existing Basic Health Care Units in Coari urban area that gave rise to the information obtained for the quantitative approach. Eleven out of the 76 family caregivers were interviewed to answer the qualitative approach.The form data, and katz index were compiled with the help of Microsoft 2007 and the semi-structured interview followed the technique of thematic analysis. The results showed that the profile of family caregivers, in majority, are middle aged married or divorced women with relatively low socioeconomic and educational level who become 24 hour caregivers. The most representative degree of relationship between the caregiver and the elderly in this study was as first degree relatives: parents and children. Regarding the profile of the dependent elderly focused on his study, the research has shown predominance age above 80 years old, female, widowed, with low educational level, affected by several chronic degenerative pathologies, which were the main causes of addiction, compromising the functionality concerning the basic activities of daily living. On the one hand the family members relationship with the elderly involved respect, affection and love, providing harmony in their home atmosphere, and on the other hand, this relationship is based on feelings of detachment and indifference. Sometimes the family network is a source of moments of support coming from the family caregivers’daughters, daughters-in-law and granddaughters while there are other moments with no support at all. The informal social network was formed by neighbors, friends and religious communities, whose support was given, specifically, by means of visits, emotional support and even financial support, whereas the formal was established by “Estratégia Saúde da Família – ESF, The Family Health Strategy - FHS, whose actions performed were considered punctual and focused. The coping resources to face the difficulties experienced by caregivers were mostly related to religious practices, which included faith and prayer, as well as love and occupation. Taking care of a dependent elderly in the family brought significant implications to caregivers’ lives, such as personal, professional and social ones. Regarding educational needs, caregivers showed that they lack information about the knowledge of pathology, the aging process, basic care in the management of dependent elderly (food, medication, bathing, position, mobilization and movements) and emergency situations. Given the questions raised in this study, we recognize how important it is for the professionals from “The Family Health Strategy” team to be better prepared to meet the elderly and their family needs in the home environment, seeking to develop actions that can achieve the goals proposed by the National Health Care System with the implementation of the National Health Policy for the Elderly in a more effective way.