Mindfulness-Based Intervention for Family Caregivers

The single-session mindfulness intervention includes a 90-minute group-based session containing different mindfulness practices, psychoeducation and group sharing activities in the single-session mindfulness intervention. A self-practice tool kit will be provided to the participants for home practice 20 minutes daily through an online platform and the participants will be told to develop the practice as a daily habit. All of the teaching contents will be closely related to dementia caregiving and delivered by a mindfulness teacher who has received 40 hours training in dementia caregiving. A weekly mindfulness practice reminder will be sent to the participants through SMS for 8 weeks. The caregivers will also be provided with access to a social media online platform for sharing their practice experience with their classmates online. The interventionist will address their difficulties and challenges via the platform to reinforce skill mastery.

The caregivers in the control group will receive brief education on dementia with the same group size and of the same duration (90-minutes) as the sessions in the intervention arm. The nurse will deliver brief education (15 minutes) on dementia in the session, followed by group sharing and discussion on their daily caregiving experience. The caregivers in the control group will be provided with a toolkit with education materials about the common health problems of older adults and also be given access to a social media platform in which they can communicate and share their caregiving experiences with classmates.