Practical and Effective Mentorship Strategies for Caregivers of Children with Chronic Conditions: A Scoping Review

• Published in: INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH Vol. 22; no. 3; p. 339
• Main Authors: Duerksen, LaDawn N., Janse van Rensburg, Chloé, Costello, Carrie, Golding, Michael A., Lê, Mê-Linh, Woods, Maya, Kelso, Sarah, Bannister, Lizabeth, Protudjer, Jennifer L. P.
• Format: Journal Article Publication
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 25.02.2025; MDPI
• Subjects: Adult; Career advancement; Caregivers; Caregivers - psychology; Child; Children & youth; Chronic Disease; Chronic illnesses; Families & family life; Grey literature; Humans; Librarians; Mentoring; Mentors; Peer tutoring; Review; Subject heading schemes; Canada; United States > US; self-help groups; peer group; caregiver; chronic disease; caregiver burden; mentors
• ISSN: 1660-4601; 1661-7827; 1660-4601
• DOI: 10.3390/ijerph22030339

Caregivers of children with chronic conditions face daily challenges and a lower quality of life, which may be improved through peer support. This scoping review explored the literature on formal caregiver-to-caregiver mentorship programs, identifying strategies to inform future programs. Using Arskey and O’Malley’s framework, we searched five databases for peer-reviewed literature on caregiver-to-caregiver mentorship programs for adult caregivers caring for children (≤18 years) with chronic conditions. Thematic analysis was performed on relevant articles. Of the 10 064 search hits, 109 were included after full-text screening. Theme 1, “Mentorship adds to medical support”, reflected how mentorship can complement medical care provided by healthcare teams. Theme 2, “Successful mentorship requires the right mentors”, highlighted the qualities of mentors crucial for effective mentorship, mentor-matching practices, and training areas for mentors. Theme 3, “Mentorship programs should balance structure and flexibility”, emphasized the importance of allowing for flexibility to accommodate diverse family needs. Theme 4, “Mentorship programs face common challenges”, summarized the challenges frequently faced when implementing mentorship programs. The study findings suggest that the success of mentorship programs hinge on factors including a flexible program structure, knowledgeable and dedicated mentors, and an infrastructure in place for supporting both the mentors and the financial needs of the program.