Empowering Caregivers to Enhance Daily Functions in Elderly Stroke Patients: A Guidebook’s Development and Validation for Occupational Therapists

Competent caregivers play a pivotal role in supporting the functional abilities of older individuals. A decline in functional activities among older adults with stroke links to various health issues, prolonged hospital stays, re-hospitalisation and ultimately contributes to an increased burden on the healthcare system. Therefore, effective training of caregivers is crucial. This study aims to develop and validate a guidebook for occupational therapists to help caregivers improve daily functioning in older stroke patients.We developed the guidebook through a three-phase, multi-method process. Phase 1 defined its content and features using literature reviews and interviews with therapists and caregivers. In Phase 2, we validated the guidebook with expert focus groups. Phase 3 improved its clarity, cultural relevance and user understanding via cognitive interviews. The guidebook comprises three sections encompassing 11 topics and 72 subtopics. Its unique attributes, including structured caregiver training, a client-centered and goal-directed approach, post-discharge support, emergency preparedness, and strategies for caregiver coping and adaptation, demonstrated outstanding face and content validity. These features achieved a perfect score of 1.0 in both Content Validity Index (CVI) and Content Knowledge Index (CKI). The guidebook holds potential for clinical application, necessitating further research to evaluate its feasibility and effectiveness in clinical settings.