The Effectiveness of Social Media Support for Caregivers: A Systematic Review

Abstract

<p><strong>Background:</strong> Caring for patients living with long term conditions is a long-term task. The augmenting use of social media (SM) supports for health information and communication has created new opportunities for new models of health-care. <strong>Objectives:</strong> This study aimed to explore the effectiveness of SM support for caregivers. <strong>Methods:</strong> This systematic review mainly includes research over the past decade on caregivers for chronic diseases, with the results focusing on SM support for caregivers. <strong>Results:</strong> This literature review found that SM-based interventions can meet caregivers’ needs and have a positive impact on caregiver burden (CB) of chronic diseases such as cancer, dementia and stroke. Experimental studies of health interventions for stroke caregivers (SCs) through WeChat interventions have been limited. <strong>Conclusion:</strong> More quantitative studies are needed in the future to explore the effectiveness of WeChat as an intervention in the burden of SCs.</p>