Helping Out: Tools To Make Cancer Caregiving Manageable

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Nearly ten million people in the United States are living with cancer, with patients requiring greater care at home for longer periods of time. The physical, emotional, and financial burdens are borne by lay caregivers with an economic impact of over $11 billion annually. This Phase II SBIR project will result in a web site with interactive tools and downloadable handheld applications. CancerCaregiving.com(tm) will provide caregivers with the means to achieve greater mastery over the practical and psychosocial tasks of caregiving while managing and reducing the burden. In Phase II, we will use the qualitative and quantitative data gathered in Phase I to refine content and the current menu of six tools, as well as research and develop the full range of interactive tools and assets for the web site. The web site will be reviewed by panels of professional and lay caregivers for content and usability. Randomized, controlled field testing will take place online and over an eight-week period to measure changes in self-efficacy and caregiving burden and satisfaction. In Phase III, CancerCaregiving.com(tm) will be launched commercially to consumers, health care institutions, cancer centers, and employers.