Families of Patients with Chronic Illness
Course #61694 -
- Participation Instructions
- Review the course material online or in print.
- Complete the course evaluation.
- Review your Transcript to view and print your Certificate of Completion. Your date of completion will be the date (Pacific Time) the course was electronically submitted for credit, with no exceptions. Partial credit is not available.
This course will review crisis theory and family systems theory as they apply to families of chronically ill patients. In addition, this course will review areas of family life that chronic illness impacts, how families respond to various stressors, caregiver stress, and the role of gender, culture, race, and ethnicity. By understanding the social impact chronic physical illness has on the family system, nurses, social workers, marriage and family therapists and other service providers will be in a better position to provide effective services and to empower families to increase their resources, coping behaviors, and problem-solving skills to deal with the stressors involved in having a family member with chronic illness.
- INTRODUCTION
- KEY TERMS, CONCEPTS, AND THEORIES
- IMPACT OF CHRONIC ILLNESS ON THE PATIENT
- IMPACT OF CHRONIC ILLNESS ON FAMILIES
- ROLE OF CULTURE, RACE, AND ETHNICITY IN CAREGIVING AND CAREGIVING BURDEN
- ASSESSMENTS FOR FAMILIES OF PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC ILLNESS
- INTERVENTIONS FOR FAMILIES
- INTERPROFESSIONAL PRACTICE AND COLLABORATION
- CONCLUSION
- RESOURCES
- Works Cited
This intermediate course is designed for psychologists involved in the care of patients with chronic illness.
The purpose of this course is to increase the knowledge base of psychologists who work with patients with chronic illness and their families, in order to effectively address the impact of chronic illness on the entire family system.
Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:
- Differentiate between the key terms involved in discussions of chronic illness.
- Discuss the major assumptions of crisis theory and their application for families with patients experiencing chronic illness.
- Discuss the major assumptions of family systems theory and their applications for families with patients experiencing chronic illness.
- Explain the Family Adjustment and Adaptation Response (FAAR) Model and its application for families with members who are chronically ill.
- Describe the impact of chronic illness on the patient and the role of the patient's developmental stage in affecting the meaning and impact of chronic illness.
- Describe the types of demands experienced by the family system when a family member is diagnosed with chronic illness.
- Describe the variations of coping responses.
- Identify and explain factors that influence how families respond to the diagnosis of chronic illness.
- Articulate the role of gender in family adaptation to chronic illness.
- Discuss the role of spirituality and religiosity in family adaptation to chronic illness.
- Distinguish between the terms "caregiving" and "caregiver," and define the concept of caregiver stress.
- Discuss the role of culture, race, and ethnicity in family caregiving.
- Utilize various types of assessments and interventions for the families of patients with chronic illness.
Alice Yick Flanagan, PhD, MSW, received her Master’s in Social Work from Columbia University, School of Social Work. She has clinical experience in mental health in correctional settings, psychiatric hospitals, and community health centers. In 1997, she received her PhD from UCLA, School of Public Policy and Social Research. Dr. Yick Flanagan completed a year-long post-doctoral fellowship at Hunter College, School of Social Work in 1999. In that year she taught the course Research Methods and Violence Against Women to Masters degree students, as well as conducting qualitative research studies on death and dying in Chinese American families.
Previously acting as a faculty member at Capella University and Northcentral University, Dr. Yick Flanagan is currently a contributing faculty member at Walden University, School of Social Work, and a dissertation chair at Grand Canyon University, College of Doctoral Studies, working with Industrial Organizational Psychology doctoral students. She also serves as a consultant/subject matter expert for the New York City Board of Education and publishing companies for online curriculum development, developing practice MCAT questions in the area of psychology and sociology. Her research focus is on the area of culture and mental health in ethnic minority communities.
Contributing faculty, Alice Yick Flanagan, PhD, MSW, has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.
Margaret Donohue, PhD
The division planner has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.
Sarah Campbell
The Director of Development and Academic Affairs has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.
The purpose of NetCE is to provide challenging curricula to assist healthcare professionals to raise their levels of expertise while fulfilling their continuing education requirements, thereby improving the quality of healthcare.
Our contributing faculty members have taken care to ensure that the information and recommendations are accurate and compatible with the standards generally accepted at the time of publication. The publisher disclaims any liability, loss or damage incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, of the use and application of any of the contents. Participants are cautioned about the potential risk of using limited knowledge when integrating new techniques into practice.
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The role of implicit biases on healthcare outcomes has become a concern, as there is some evidence that implicit biases contribute to health disparities, professionals' attitudes toward and interactions with patients, quality of care, diagnoses, and treatment decisions. This may produce differences in help-seeking, diagnoses, and ultimately treatments and interventions. Implicit biases may also unwittingly produce professional behaviors, attitudes, and interactions that reduce patients' trust and comfort with their provider, leading to earlier termination of visits and/or reduced adherence and follow-up. Disadvantaged groups are marginalized in the healthcare system and vulnerable on multiple levels; health professionals' implicit biases can further exacerbate these existing disadvantages.
Interventions or strategies designed to reduce implicit bias may be categorized as change-based or control-based. Change-based interventions focus on reducing or changing cognitive associations underlying implicit biases. These interventions might include challenging stereotypes. Conversely, control-based interventions involve reducing the effects of the implicit bias on the individual's behaviors. These strategies include increasing awareness of biased thoughts and responses. The two types of interventions are not mutually exclusive and may be used synergistically.