A Guide to the Rural Caregievers of Children with Heart disease

In resources limited countries health services cannot provide a continuous palliative care for patients within health care facilities. Patients with chronic illness are to be taken care of by their significant others at home. This applies to the majority of children with heart diseases in Namibia. Providing palliative care at home for a child with heart disease implies that the caregivers do have support systems in place. However this assumption is contrary to the reality on the African continent because often caregivers lack social support and economic means to facilitate care at home. In spite of lack of resources family members nevertheless are the ultimate option for the provisions of palliative care to these children at home. This manuscript provides a condensed description of how the rural caregivers who are from vulnerable socio-economic context cope with providing home care to their children with heart disease. It further discusses a proposed health care programme to facilitate the caregivers in providing quality care for children with heart disease at home while waiting for corrective treatment or when palliative care is the only option for the child.