Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the long-term effects of a family counseling program on the family caregivers of long-term care (LTC) recipients after one-year follow-up.Methods: This work was designed as a descriptive qualitative study using focus group interviews to explore the caregiving experience of the family caregivers.Results: The long-term effects of the counseling programs were categorized into five themes: (1) improved caregiving competence, (2) positively-changed caregiving experience, (3) increased social connection, (4) delayed LTC institutionalization, and (5) expecting for continued support.Conclusion: The family counseling program was proved to be effective in the long term through this study. The program should be maintained to sustain the positive effects of the counseling program and also respond to the expectations of the participants.
Objectives: This study aimed to analyze the outcomes of the Comprehensive Health and Social Need Assessment (CHSNA) system, which identifies community residents’ health and social needs, and to link these needs with the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF). Methods: Adult community residents in a metropolitan city in Korea were recruited. They were asked to assess their health and social needs via the CHSNA system, which was integrated into an online community-care platform. Three assessment steps (basic health assessment, needs for activities of daily living, and in-depth health assessment) associated with five ICF components were used to evaluate physical health impairment, difficulties in activities and participation, and environmental problems. The final list of health and social needs was systematically linked to the domains and categories of the ICF. Only data from participants who completed all three assessment steps were included.Results: Wide ranges of impairments and difficulties regarding the daily living activities, physical health, and environmental status of the community were recorded from 190 people who completed assessments of their health and social needs by the CHSNA system. These participants reported various health and social needs for their community life; common needs corresponded to the ICF components of body functions and activities/participation. Conclusions: The ICF may be suitable for determining the health-related problems and needs of the general population. Possible improvements to the present system include providing support for completing all assessment steps and developing an ICF core set for an enhanced understanding of health and social needs.
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