Caregiver Empowerment of Children With Asthma: A Literature Review

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.