Abstract / Summary
Informal caregivers of people with dementia are at increased risk of psychological distress, depressive symptoms, and suicidal ideation. Despite growing recognition of caregiver burden, preventive interventions specifically addressing emotional well-being and suicide-related vulnerability among older caregivers remain limited, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe. This pilot study evaluated a multicomponent psychoeducational and supportive intervention developed for older informal caregivers of people with dementia in Poland. A controlled longitudinal quasi-experimental pilot study was conducted among 103 informal caregivers recruited from five public healthcare institutions in Poland. Participants were allocated to an intervention group ( n = 44) or a no-intervention control group ( n = 59). The intervention consisted of eleven weekly group-based sessions including psychoeducation, practising coping strategies and other new skills, and relaxation techniques. Assessments were conducted at baseline (T1), immediately post-intervention (T2), and at three-month follow-up (T3). Primary outcomes included depressive symptoms measured using the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Secondary outcomes included suicidality assessed with the Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS), care burden results measured with the COPE Index, and dementia-related knowledge. Longitudinal changes were analysed using linear mixed-effects models and generalized estimating equations adjusted for age, sex, and education. At three-month follow-up, 38 of 44 participants (86.4%) remained in the intervention group and 57 of 59 (96.6%) in the control group, corresponding to dropout rates of 13.6% and 3.4%, respectively. At follow-up, the group × time estimate for GDS scores was β = −1.06 (95% CI − 2.11 to − 0.01, p = 0.048), indicating a greater reduction in GDS scores in the intervention group relative to controls. No significant intervention effects were observed for PHQ-9 scores, suicidality outcomes, caregiving burden dimensions, or knowledge scores after adjustment for covariates. Exploratory analyses suggested larger improvements among participants with higher baseline depressive symptoms and greater caregiving burden. Improvements in perceived support quality were associated with reductions in depressive symptoms. This pilot evaluation identified a modest reduction in depressive symptoms measured with GDS among older informal caregivers of people with dementia at three-month follow-up. However, this finding was not replicated using PHQ-9, and no significant intervention effects were observed for the secondary outcomes. Given the modest sample size and non-randomized design, these findings should be considered preliminary and hypothesis-generating rather than confirmatory evidence of intervention effectiveness. Larger randomized studies with longer follow-up periods are needed to determine the effectiveness of the programme. Not applicable.