Aim: The present study aimed at investigating the need for professional assistance in carers of stroke patients who do not require a therapeutic group intervention; and furthermore, how this need for assistance is changing in the course of rehabilitation.
Method: Ten highly burdened spouses of stroke survivors were interviewed twice in the framework of a qualitative panel study. In-depth interviews concerning subjective burden and assistance requirements were carried out and analyzed using Grounded Theory coding procedures.
Results: The evaluation of the interview data showed that the relatives' needs for assistance change in the course of rehabilitation, and feature gender- and age-specific differences. Assistance needs persist in the medium and long term, with qualitative diversifications: During the in-patient rehabilitation period, carers request mainly illness-related information, whereas emotional assistance is rarely desired. This is different during the out-patient rehabilitation period: While the desire for further information decreases, the need for emotional assistance (e. g.disburdening counselling) increasingly comes to the fore. Women much more often desire professional assistance than men.
Discussion: When designing and offering professional assistance for caregivers of stroke patients, gender- and age-specific aspects should be taken into account, as well as the medium- and long-term changes in assistance need.