Effectiveness of day care in supporting family caregivers of people with dementia: A systematic review

Day care (DC) provides a break in daily care as a support strategy for family caregivers (FC) of people with dementia (PwD). OBJECTIVE: to analyze the support strategies used by the DC for FC, their methodological and theoretical models, as well as the respective benefits for FC burden, coping strategies and quality of life. METHODS: a systematic review following the Prisma methodology was performed on PubMed, PsycInfo, Scopus and SciELO electronic databases in August, 2018. The search keywords were “day care”, “dementia” or Alzheimer disease, “caregiver”, “quality of life” and “psychological adaptation”. RESULTS: twenty-one studies were included. No randomized controlled trials were found. The provision of education, counseling and support, access to information, the professionals' expertise and the quality of their relationship with DC users were highlighted by caregivers. Compared to standard programs centering on PwD, the integrated program focused on PwD and FC activities showed increased feelings of competence and self-confidence of FC to postpone institutionalization. Heterogeneity in the structure and organization of the DC programs, intervention strategies and theoretical basis was observed. CONCLUSION: Integrated programs are a promising approach that addresses the needs and demands of PwD and their FC in a multidimensional manner.