32. Caregiver pre‐bereavement general health, pain and physical dimensions of quality of life: home palliative care versus usual care.
| Study | Measure | Analysis | Follow‐up | Significance and direction | Details |
|
Jordhøy 2000 Norway (high quality) and Ahlner‐Elmqvist 2008 Sweden |
SF‐36 5 subscales: physical functioning (10 items), role limitation due to physical problems (4 items), bodily pain (2 items), vitality (4 items), and general health perception (5 items). transformed scores: from 0 to 100; higher scores equal better health; caregiver report |
Backwards from death | 44 to 13 months |
Physical functioning subscale Group main effect: favours intervention b 5.47 SE 2.55; P value < 0.05 Group by time interaction: marginally significant difference favouring intervention P value < 0.10 and ≥ 0.05 Other 4 subscales Group main effect and group by time interaction n.s. P value ≥ 0.10 |
Pooled analysis of data from the 2 studies (n = 517); longitudinal analysis of trajectories included pre‐ and post‐bereavement measurements Findings showed that intervention group scored 5 points higher than controls at the first time point (b 5.47); all other observed differences were not statistically significant b values and SEs for each time interval (in group by time analysis) and graphs with descriptive data on trajectories in scores over time provided in Ringdal 2004 (Jordhøy 2000 and Ahlner‐Elmqvist 2008) |
| 12 to 6 months | |||||
| 5 to 0 months | |||||
| Forwards from death | 1 to 2 months | ||||
| 3 to 5 months | |||||
| 6 to 12 months | |||||
| 13 to 17 months |
b: metric regression coefficient; n.s.: non‐significant; SE: standard error.