Analysis of caregivers whose loved one died of HF
Despite the majority of caregivers being unaware of HF severity
and/or terminality, forty of the patients died during study enrollment.
Post-death interviews were conducted with thirty-four of
these caregivers. The other six caregivers were unreachable for
follow-up.
Interviews of the forty caregivers of patients that died during
the study were reviewed and compared to the larger sample. The
majority of caregivers for these patients did not perceive the
severity of heart failure (60%) and also did not realize their loved
one was reaching end of life (70%). Caregivers did not indicate an
understanding of HF severity or realize their loved one was dying
even when declining health was apparent and death was imminent.
One caregiver discussed the frequent exacerbations of HF
without recognizing the patient’s status as declining,