OBJECTIVE: To review qualitative studies on the experience of sudden cardiac arrest survival from the perspective of both survivors and their key supporters, including family/close friends.
METHODS: A seven-step meta-ethnography and synthesis of qualitative evidence was undertaken, informed by the Meta-Ethnography Reporting Guidelines (eMERGe). Four major databases were searched (Medline, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO; January 1995-January 2022, updated July 2023) for qualitative studies exploring survivors\' and/or key supporters\' experiences of cardiac arrest survival. The Critical Appraisal Skills Programme checklist and Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation - Confidence in Evidence from Reviews of Qualitative Research (GRADE-CERQual) were applied to evaluate the overall confidence in research findings. Constructs were identified from each paper, informing theme and sub-theme development.
RESULTS: From 15,917 unique titles/abstracts and 196 full-text articles, 32 met the inclusion criteria. Three themes captured the survivors\' experiences: 1) Making sense of my cardiac arrest; 2) Learning to trust my body and mind; and 3) Re-evaluating my life. A further three themes reflected key supporters\' experiences: 1) Emotional turmoil; 2) Becoming a carer: same person but different me; and 3) Engaging with a new and unknown world. However, limited data and some methodological weaknesses in included studies reduced confidence in several themes. The findings were conceived within the overarching concept of \'negotiating a new normal\'.
CONCLUSIONS: The enduring psychosocial and physical sequelae of cardiac arrest survival substantially impacts the lives of survivors and their key supporters, requiring negotiation of their \'new normality\'. The need for sense-making, physical and psychological recovery, and the new roles for key supporters should be strong considerations in the development of future interventions.

Recent research suggests that mental health problems in spouses of cancer survivors are associated with worse mental health in the survivors themselves. Adequately treating spousal mental health problems therefore represents an opportunity to improve outcomes for both cancer survivors and their co-surviving family members.
Using nationally representative data, this study sought to determine how depression treatment differs between spouses of cancer survivors with depression compared to the general married population and assess rural/urban disparities in treatment.
The design of the study is cross sectional.
Data are from the Medical Expenditures Panel Survey, a household-based survey of US adults; we concatenated data from 2004 to 2013. We identified spouses of cancer survivors (n = 225) and a comparison group of married adults (n = 3678).
Key measures included depression, guideline concordance of depression treatment (at least four prescriptions related to depression treatment, or at least eight psychotherapy or counseling visits), and sociodemographic characteristics. Logistic regressions evaluated the association between whether their spouse had cancer and receipt of guideline-concordant treatment, controlling for sociodemographic characteristics; secondary analyses included rurality as a moderator. Analyses were weighted to account for the complex sampling design.
Spouses of cancer survivors were 33% less likely to receive guideline-concordant depression treatment than comparison spouses (odds ratio (OR) 0.67, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.45-0.99), controlling for covariates. Rural-urban disparities were observed: rural spouses of cancer survivors were 72% less likely to receive guideline-concordant treatment (OR 0.28, 95% CI 0.11-0.68) than rural comparison spouses. Spouses of cancer survivors and comparison spouses were no different in their receipt of any treatment versus no treatment.
Spouses of cancer survivors with depression may be at increased risk of non-guideline-concordant depression treatment, particularly in rural areas. The findings have implications for identifying and educating individuals with depression in primary care and other clinical areas.