Family, know thyself: A workbook-based intergenerational intervention to improve parent care coordination

This pilot study tested the feasibility, acceptability, and impact of a workbook-based intervention to enhance intergenerational collaboration in elder parent care coordination. Older parents and their adult children completed a written assessment of parent care needs and wishes, along with perceptions of family functioning, communication, and decision-making skills. Responses were assembled into a workbook. A facilitator led the family through a 1-hour education session, teaching skills and highlighting areas of agreement and disagreement. Post-intervention ratings suggested that families found the intervention to be informative and useful. Family members commented that the intervention prompted them to consider new issues in parent care and to discover gaps in their knowledge about parents. This type of intervention may help late-life families have important preparatory conversations about care needs and coordination.