Is increased carer knowledge of the health care system associated with decreased preventable hospitalizations for people in the community diagnosed with dementia? A systematic review protocol

This study aims to assess the effectiveness of interventions focused on reducing avoidable hospitalization for PLWD by supporting carers to manage the health care needs of the PLWD, via improved awareness and understanding of health and the healthcare system.MethodScientific and gray literature will be searched using a combination of keywords pertaining to dementia, caregivers, education, and support. Included studies will involve community-dwelling PLWD and caregivers, with interventions aimed at improving carer ’s understanding of the healthcare system and ability to manage the caregiving role. The primary outcome will be hospitalization related to the PLWD and secondary outcomes will be carer burden, stress, wellbeing, and quality of life. All study designs will be considered. Data from included studies will be analyzed using descriptive statistics and content analysis. If the data permits, we will perform a meta-analysis and subgroup analyses, related to the intervention and participant characteristics.DiscussionThis review will provide a comprehensive picture of the knowledge available on the subject and identify knowledge gaps in existing literature. The findings may highlight the lack of existing interventions for PLWD and their carers who live in the community and will help stakeholders to identify needs and develop programs targeted to carers and care recipients that prevent avoidable hospitalization for PLWD.Systematic review registrationPROSPERO number:49655.
Source: Systematic Reviews - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research