Introduction:

Cerebrovascular accident is one of the main causes of death and disability among the elderly. The cares following cerebrovascular accident are commonly undertaken by the family, with little knowledge about the disease and few capacities to provide care at home.

Objective:

To know the experiences and challenges in the care-related activities performed at home and undertaken by the family caregivers of elderly people dependent on care after cerebrovascular accident.

Methods:

Qualitative study carried out using the focus group technique and with five family caregivers of elderly people with cerebrovascular accident under follow-up by the Cerebral Vascular Accident Care Line of a hospital in the southern region of Brazil. Three meetings were held in April 2018. Thematic analysis was used for the interpretation of the results. The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee under number 18007.

Results:

Four categories emerged: becoming a caregiver for a family member after cerebrovascular accident, difficulties experienced, no preparation for managing the dependent family member, and coping strategies.

Conclusions:

The experiences and challenges reported provide evidence for structuring and qualifying care programs for caregivers based on their needs.

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