Literature Review: Best Practices in Family Caregiving and Delivering Outreach Services to Vulnerable Adults
- CCBR
- May 8
- 2 min read
Updated: 7 days ago
The Centre for Community Based Research recently conducted a literature review for PLEA Community Services Society of BC (PLEA) focused on best practices and existing research related to family caregiving for vulnerable adults, as well as the delivery of outreach and community-based support services by front-line staff. The findings were intended to equip PLEA with the knowledge needed to develop a theory of change and evaluation framework for their adult services division.
PLEA’s adult services offer an alternative to institutional or congregate care for adults who can no longer live independently. It provides specialized support within the homes of contracted family caregivers coupled with the one-to-one support of an adult support worker. They work primarily with adults facing significant physical and mental health challenges, including acquired brain injuries, dementia, addictions, autism, dual diagnoses, developmental disabilities, and Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD).
To achieve our goal, we provided a comprehensive understanding of four critical topics to inform their theory of change and evaluation framework:
Desired Outcomes: Identifying the specific and potential outcomes that PLEA’s adult services could achieve for the adults it serves.
Best Practices: Highlighting evidence-based activities and best practices essential for achieving these desired outcomes.
Influencing Factors: Exploring the contextual factors that influence the success of its activities in driving positive outcomes.
Evaluation Tools: Presenting the methods and tools that could be used to evaluate whether the intended outcomes have been successfully achieved.
The key research questions that guided this literature review were:
What are the key desired outcomes caregiving and social service organizations should aim for when supporting vulnerable adults receiving family care?
What best practices or activities exist to help achieve the desired outcomes?
What contextual factors can influence the attainment of these intended outcomes?
What are the most effective tools and methods for assessing whether these outcomes have been achieved?
