Peer-reviewed article
Caregiver Empowerment of Children With Asthma: A Literature Review.
Ibiezugbe L, Turnage D ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This literature review examines how empowering caregivers of children with asthma affects their ability to manage the condition and improve quality of life. The review of 22 studies found that caregiver empowerment relates to confidence, self-efficacy, and mental health outcomes. Key themes included asthma management strategies, quality of life improvements, and factors that help or hinder empowerment. The authors identify gaps in how empowerment is measured and call for more research on the connection between caregiver empowerment and asthma control.
Key points
- Asthma is a major chronic disease with large disease burden worldwide
- Caregivers of children with asthma experience decreased quality of life and stress
- Empowerment interventions focus on asthma management and quality of life themes
- Research identified facilitators for empowerment and consequences of empowerment
- There is a need for further development of empowerment measurement methods in this population
Limitations
This is a narrative literature review rather than a systematic review, so the selection and synthesis of studies may not be comprehensive or fully rigorous. The review does not specify which countries' literature was included, making it unclear whether findings apply globally or to specific regions.
Abstract
Purpose Asthma is a major chronic disease with a large disease burden worldwide. Caregivers of children with asthma can have decreased quality of life and stress. Empowerment has been studied in the caregiver population related to competence, self-efficacy, and mental health. The aim of this paper is to examine studies related to empowerment in caregivers of children with asthma. Design and methods A traditional, narrative literature review was conducted using MEDLINE, CINAHL, and APA PsycInfo Databases. Articles were reviewed related to empowerment in caregivers of children with asthma. Twenty-two articles were retained to include in the review, as they met all inclusion and exclusion criteria. Results Articles were either related to caregiver empowerment interventions or the concept of empowerment. Themes related to empowerment interventions included asthma management and quality of life. Themes related to the concept of empowerment include facilitators for empowerment, consequences of empowerment, and the need for further development of empowerment methods. Practice implications Empowerment is an important concept related to caregivers of children with asthma. There is a need for further studies to examine ways to measure empowerment in this population and to look at the relationships between caregiver empowerment and other key concepts related to asthma management.