| Sumario: | Purpose Stress, burnout and mental health issues are common among those caring for people with chronic illnesses and disability. Even with some support, family caregivers continue to experience unmet needs pertaining to their caregiving tasks. Research has shown that devices and other technologies can help caregivers solve problems (Mortenson et al., 2012). However, there are barriers that seem to hamper the effective use of technology by family caregivers. Objectives: (1) To describe the evolving needs of family caregivers; (2) to explore barriers that hinder access, acceptance and utilization of assistive technology available for caregiving, and (3) to identify potential technological solutions (e.g., devices, services, programs) that caregivers would like to see developed. Methods People aged 19 and above who are current caregivers were recruited. As part of a larger study, participants took part in a series of semi-structured interviews. Our analysis focuses on secondary interviews that highlight important and unmet needs, barriers to accessing, accepting and using technology to provide care and potential solutions. Interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Thematic content analysis of transcripts was carried out using NVIVO 12. Results and Discussion As described in Table 1, twenty-one family caregivers aged 31 to 91 participated in this study. Three themes were identified: caregiver requirements, experience with technology experiences, and making caregiving easier. "Caregiver requirements" represented the evolving and unresolved needs of caregivers. "Technology experiences" described difficulties that caregivers had in identifying, selecting, acquiring and using technology for care provision. "Making caregiving easier" outlined the suggestions of caregivers about possible technological solutions that could address their needs. These fell into three broad categories included in Table 2: applications, devices and services. This research will inform user-centered development of technological solutions to address caregiver's unmet needs and achieve their desired goals.
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