Family-oriented interventions for adults with acquired brain injury and their families: a scoping review

Abstract

This scoping review sought to describe the literature about the different types of interventions to support families of patients with acquired brain injuries and their outcomes. IntroductionAcquired brain injuries are among the leading causes of disability in adults worldwide and have physical, cognitive or/and behavioral consequences not only for the patient, but also for the family. Several support interventions have been proposed in different contexts at different phases of recovery with various levels of evidence, yet no synthesis is available to date. Inclusion criteriaWe included studies that focused on family members of patients suffering from ABI. The concept under review included any type of intervention or action oriented to support families of patients with ABI, in any care setting. We included all published qualitative and quantitative designs, including those in the grey literature. MethodsA three-step search strategy was performed. Searches were conducted in eight major databases,

Practical Guidance for Knowledge Synthesis: Scoping Review Methods

“…Results data can also be usefully presented as graphs, particularly where the concept or context of the review is broad and has multiple characteristics (Figure 3) [10]. Equally, Tables can be used to good effect, but must be thoughtfully put together e considering the knowledge needs and interests of potential readers and how to best communicate key findings with them.…”

“…Equally, Tables can be used to good effect, but must be thoughtfully put together e considering the knowledge needs and interests of potential readers and how to best communicate key findings with them. In Table 1 for example, the authors have summarized four separate factors related to interventions for along with the number of studies reporting the factors in the review of family-oriented interventions for adults with acquired brain injury and their families [10].…”

“…The wording of each question is important, it needs to be congruent with the purpose, and clearly illustrate the participant, concept and context of interest to the review team. For example de Goumoens et al aims and core questions were linked via clear descriptions of the population/participants, plus concept and context of interest [10].…”

“…The wording is important, note how the authors stated they were going to 'examine the range and nature … ' i.e. … look at all available interventions and describe their characteristics [10]. This purpose was then expanded on by defining the Participants, Concept and Context.…”

“…Other scoping reviews have described highly detailed lists of the specific types of studies that will be included, and this more descriptive model is preferred as it removes uncertainty about what exact kinds of papers will be included, it also helps readers of the published scoping review to evaluate whether any important and relevant study designs were not included. de Goumoens et al for example listed 12 different methods for quantitative research, as well as qualitative and mixedmethods papers for their scoping review [10].…”