Routine and learning process of family caregivers of chronic patients

Abstract

This article aims to know the experiences concerning the home care of family caregivers of dependent chronic patients. It is a qualitative, descriptive and exploratory study with 11 family caregivers of seven registered users in a unit of the Family Health Strategy, located in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul. Data collection was carried out from July to September 2010 and consisted of narrative interviews, which were oriented by guiding themes, as well as a field journal. The categories home nursing: learning about chronicity and daily care of family caregivers emerged from thematic analysis. Results show that experiences are unique for each family, since the disease may be associated to cultural aspects. Therefore, health professionals, including the nurse, should recognize the peculiarities and possibilities of action in several situations concerning the family, aiming to establish the development of strategies of care, both in its wide and individual senses.