Six-month follow-up and longitudinal analysis of an adapted Savvy Caregiver Program for older family caregivers of adults with intellectual disabilities

Objectives Older family caregivers of adults with intellectual disabilities often provide care for decades, facing limited respite, uncertainty about the future, and difficulties accessing formal support. Programs that build caregivers’ skills and confidence could help services support them better, yet few exist. This study offers a preliminary evaluation of an adapted Savvy Caregiver Program for this population.Methods In a non-randomised, quasi-experimental study, 103 Italian family caregivers aged 60 years and older participated: 52 received the adapted six-session program and 51 continued receiving usual support. Caregiving self-efficacy, coping, burden, social support, and care-recipient functional independence were assessed at baseline, post-intervention, and six-month follow-up.Results Compared with usual support, the intervention group showed greater gains in confidence to seek respite, at post-intervention but not at six-month follow-up, and in problem-focused coping, which remained elevated at follow-up. No differential changes were found for the other outcomes.Conclusions An adapted psychoeducational program may strengthen specific caregiving skills, particularly the confidence to ask for help, among older family caregivers of adults with intellectual disabilities. For more entrenched challenges such as burden and social support, services will likely need to pair such programs with booster sessions and clearer pathways to respite and community support.