Support groups for carers of a person with dementia who lives at home: A focused ethnographic study

Aims: To explore and understand carer participation in support groups when caring for a person with dementia who lives at home Design: Focused ethnographic design.; Methods: Participant observations and semi-structured interviews were conducted from January - December 2015. The data were collected from four support groups in the Danish primary health care system. Interviews were conducted with 25 carers. An inductive content analysis of the data was performed.; Results: Three themes were identified: emotional well-being due to peer and family support, emotional sense of togetherness despite hardships and emotional and ethical considerations in caregiving.; Conclusion: Support group participation with positive peer interaction increases carer self-esteem and feelings of togetherness, as well as an awareness of maintaining the care receiver's dignity and prevention of conflicts with families, resulting in an improvement in carer well-being, leading to increased motivation to continue caring. Carers who hid their group participation face a potential conflict with the care receiver.