| Abstract: |
Informal caregivers-family members, friends, and other loved ones-are an essential, uncompensated, and significantly burdened extension of the healthcare team. Rapid advances in cancer care, including new drugs and immunotherapies and more sophisticated diagnostic tools, have markedly improved the ability to medically extend lives and enhance survival. As patients are living longer, with today's shorter hospital stays and shift toward increased outpatient care, however, the demands placed on all caregivers and their needs have substantially increased. This book reveals the field of psycho-oncology's exploration of the depth of complexities of caregiving experiences and identifies the vast expanses left to be understood. It describes the characteristics and experiences of cancer caregivers based on their life stage, relationship to the patient, and ethnic group membership, as well as patients' disease and treatment type. The book highlights the significant progress in research focused on the development and dissemination of psychosocial interventions for cancer caregivers and includes in-depth case studies to illustrate their delivery and application. It also explores the provision of support to caregivers in the community and the legal and ethical concerns faced by caregivers throughout the caregiving trajectory. The book offers both fundamental and practical information and is the essential resource for all healthcare professionals who work with patients and families facing cancer. The book on informal caregivers is timely and needed. It addresses our current need for direction and information to educate caregivers, patients, providers, administrators, researchers, and policymakers to meet the increasing demands of providing adequate resources for patients with cancer and their families. Professionals who care for patients with cancer, including physicians, nurses, social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists, and chaplains will find this book useful and filled with practical advice to help improve caregivers' experiences with caring for their loved one and, most importantly, helping caregivers care for themselves. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved) |
