Biostatistics

Articles	Article 1: Family caregiver burden: results of a longitudinal study of breast cancer patients and their principal caregivers	Article 2: Spouse cancer caregivers’ burden and distress at entry to home hospice: The role of relationship quality
Sample size	89 caregivers 55% male  52% Female Average age 53 years old	131 caregivers 92% White and 35% male. Average age 5 years old
Time period	Longitudinal; 3 years	Cross sectional; upon enrollment into hospice care. 1 week
Results	·         more caregivers than patients were anxious (35% v. 19%, p = 0.009) ·	·             41 caregivers saw their partner as supportive (31%) ·             and 90 saw their partner as ambivalent (69%). ·             Both groups on average rated their relationship with their spouse as highly important (of 6 possible; supportive M ¼ 5.97, SD ¼ 0.16; ambivalent M ¼ 5.78, SD ¼ 0.49) and highly positive (of 6 possible; supportive M ¼ 5.85, SD ¼ 0.36; ambivalent M ¼ 5.02, SD ¼ 1.07)

 

 

Why

Article one focuses on family care givers and the burden they face when caring for their terminally ill loved ones. The researches in article one chose to study the 89 caregivers over a three year time period. In doing so, data gathered in the study examines caregivers at one the start, middle and end points, targeting points of heightened stress and anxiety. Article two also  focuses on the impact of caring for a loved one faced with terminal illness. However unlike article one which examines economic, and psychosocial effects of providing care, article two’s main focus is the level of stress based on relationship quality (Reblin, et al., 2016).  This study was conducted using a cross sectional approach to the 113 participants using

 

Differences and Similarities

In both studies the sample size included caregivers who were related to the patient. Likewise, both studies included people who are caregivers to patients labeled as being terminally ill. As far as the studies conducted  by each, both studies took into consideration the demographics for both as well a use qualitative data. For example, article one used the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale to measures depression (Grunfeld et al., 2004), and the SRI scale used in article two to rate relationship quality (Reblin et al., 2016). Both also collected demographic data using questionnaires.

A difference between the two studies is the research type, (Longitudinal and Cross Section). The studies. Another difference is the  number of people being studied in each article (89, 113). The health questions are also differing based on the goal of each. Article one seeks to find the effect of any an all burdens that a caregiver may face over time, while article two focused the link between the quality of a relationship and caregiver health.

 

Strength and Limitations

Both studies proved insight into the quality of health and potential health risk of caring for a loved one dealing with terminal illness. Some strengths of Article One include, a variety of participants included in the sample population, 55% male, 52% female as well  as the research type. Meaning a link could be made using the starting data and ending data over a three year time period. One limitation though was the number of participants used. Including a larger sample size would add to the validity of the conclusion.

Article two’s approach to the study is accurately done so based on the goal of the research. There is a large enough sample size to determine a relationship quality and personal health. While the study is limited in the sample size diversity, a cross sectional study is appropriate.

 

 

References:

Grunfeld, E., Coyle, D., Whelan, T., Clinch, J., Reyno, L., Earle, C. C., & . . . Glossop, R. (2004). Family caregiver burden: Results of a longitudinal study of breast cancer patients and their principal caregivers. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 170(12), 1795–1801. doi:10.1503/cmaj.1031205
http://ezproxy.snhu.edu/login?url=http://www.cmaj.ca/content/170/12/1795

 

 

Reblin, M., Donaldson, G., Ellington, L., Mooney, K., Caserta, M., & Lund, D. (2016). Spouse cancer           caregivers’ burden and distress at entry to home hospice: The role of relationship quality.                Journal Of Social And Personal Relationships, 33(5), 666-686. doi:10.1177/0265407515588220