General practice

Background: Family caregivers of former intensive care unit (ICU) patients may suffer from physical and mental problems owing to ICU hospitalisation of their loved ones. These problems can have a major impact on their daily lives. Little is known about experienced consequences of ICU hospitalisation on caregivers in general practice. Aim: To explore health problems in family caregivers of former ICU patients and the consequences in their daily lives.

The study objective was to explore the characteristics of rural general practice which exemplify optimal end‐of‐life (EOL) care from the perspective of people diagnosed with cancer, their informal carers and general practitioners (GPs); and the extent to which consumers perceived that actual EOL care addressed these characteristics. Semi‐structured telephone interviews were conducted with six people diagnosed with cancer, three informal carers and four GPs in rural and regional Australia. Using a social constructionist approach, thematic analysis was undertaken.

Background: Informal carers often play an integral role in the lives of people with intellectual disability (ID) residing in the community. In this study, we explored the extent to which carers of people with ID believe that the health care needs of the person they care for are being accommodated by general practice. Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 25 informal carers to people with ID living in Australia.

The number of carers in the community is rising, and the importance of general practice in providing supportfor them has been highlighted. Caring for a disabled friend or relative has been shown to be harmful to the health of the caregiver and changes in social and family structure have led carers to become isolated and more reliant on the formal support services. However, many carersfeel that GPs do not understand their needs, and in turn many GPs and nursesfeel that they lack the relevant resources and training to take a more proactive role.

Background. Despite decades of research showing high rates of unmet need in older people, there currently is little understanding of why these needs remain unmet. This study was performed as part of a larger feasibility study of a multidisciplinary needs assessment tool in primary care.

Objective. The aim of the present study was to explore patients' and carers' help-seeking behaviour and perceived barriers to meeting unmet needs.

Unpaid carers provide the backbone for community care, supplying the everyday support and care to users which paid carers would otherwise have to provide. There is increasing political awareness about the need to support carers if the rhetoric of community care is to be a reality. Both research and policy documents emphasise the carer's need for information. Carers see the Primary Health Care Team as being pivotal in providing them with advice, support and information. This paper describes a study to identify carers in a general practice and to provide them with information.

Aims and objectives.  To determine the feasibility of a screening tool to identify carers in a general practice.

May carers are isolated and GP surgeries are often their first point of contact for support and resources. This article describes the role of a carer support and development worker, whose aim is to provide the support carers need. Cites 19 references. [Journal abstract]

Up to £6 million will be made available over the next four years to help GPs identify carers earlier, Care Services Minister Paul Burstow announced in November.

Speaking at the Carers UK Summit, Mr Burstow outlined a series of measures to further support carers as he launched ‘Recognised, valued and supported: Next Steps for the Carers Strategy.’