Designing and Evaluating a Goal-Setting Tip Sheet for Stroke Family Caregiver Health.

Purpose: The aim of the study was to design and evaluate a goal-setting tip sheet to improve stroke family caregiver health as part of the Telephone Assessment and Skill-Building Kit program.

Design: A multimethod design using open-ended questions and rating forms was used in this study.

Methods: In two studies, the goal-setting tip sheet was evaluated by caregivers (N = 12; N = 6), researchers (N = 10; N = 3), clinicians (N = 8; N = 4), and technology experts (N = 4; N = 4). Rigorous qualitative content analysis procedures were used with descriptive statistics for ratings.

Findings: Qualitative strengths and areas for improvement refined the goal-setting tip sheet. From 1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree, ratings averaged from 3.25 to 5.00 for strategies, accuracy, feasibility, and acceptability.

Conclusions: The goal-setting tip sheet was found to be accurate, feasible, and acceptable. Future research is needed to determine the impact on caregiver health.

Clinical relevance: Stroke caregivers often neglect their own health; goal setting has the potential to improve caregiver health.