Margaret MacAndrew

A survey-based study of knowledge of Alzheimer’s disease among health care staff

BackgroundContinued aging of the population is expected to be accompanied by substantial increases in the number of people with dementia and in the number of health care staff required to care for them. Adequate knowledge about dementia among health care staff is important to the quality of care delivered to this vulnerable population. The purpose of this study was to assess knowledge about dementia across a range of health care staff in a regional health service district.MethodsKnowledge levels were investigated via the validated 30-item Alzheimer’s Disease Knowledge Scale (ADKS). All health service district staff with e-mail access were invited to participate in an online survey. Knowledge levels were compared across demographic categories, professional groups, and by whether the respondent had any professional or personal experience caring for someone with dementia. The effect of dementia-specific training or education on knowledge level was also evaluated.ResultsA diverse staff group (N = 360), in terms of age, professional group (nursing, medicine, allied health, support staff) and work setting from a regional health service in Queensland, Australia responded. Overall knowledge about Alzheimer’s disease was of a generally moderate level with significant differences being observed by professional group and whether the respondent had any professional or personal experience caring for someone with dementia. Knowledge was lower for some of the specific content domains of the ADKS, especially those that were more medically-oriented, such as ‘risk factors’ and ‘course of the disease.’ Knowledge was higher for those who had experienced dementia-specific training, such as attendance at a series of relevant workshops.ConclusionsSpecific deficits in dementia knowledge were identified among Australian health care staff, and the results suggest dementia-specific training might improve knowledge. As one piece of an overall plan to improve health care delivery to people with dementia, this research supports the role of introducing systematic dementia-specific education or training.

Literature review: use of respite by carers of people with dementia

Respite care is a cornerstone service for the home management of people with dementia. It is used by carers to mitigate the stress related to the demands of caring by allowing time for them to rest and do things for themselves, thus maintaining the caring relationship at home and perhaps forestalling long-term placement in a residential aged care facility. Despite numerous anecdotal reports in support of respite care, its uptake by carers of people with dementia remains relatively low. The aim of this paper was to examine the factors that constitute the use of respite by carers of people with dementia by reviewing quantitative and qualitative research predominantly from the years 1990 to 2012. Seventy-six international studies of different types of respite care were included for this review and their methods were critically appraised. The key topics identified were in relation to information access, the barriers to carers realising need for and seeking respite, satisfaction with respite services including the outcomes for carers and people with dementia, the characteristics of an effective respite service and the role of health workers in providing appropriate respite care. Finally, limitations with considering the literature as a whole were highlighted and recommendations made for future research.

A Systematic Review of Interventions to Change Staff Care Practices in Order to Improve Resident Outcomes in Nursing Homes.

Background We systematically reviewed interventions that attempted to change staff practice to improve long-term care resident outcomes. Methods Studies met criteria if they used a control group, included 6 or more nursing home units and quantitatively assessed staff behavior or resident outcomes. Intervention components were coded as including education material, training, audit and feedback, monitoring, champions, team meetings, policy or procedures and organizational restructure. Results Sixty-three unique studies were broadly grouped according to clinical domain—oral health (3 studies), hygiene and infection control (3 studies), nutrition (2 studies), nursing home acquired pneumonia (2 studies), depression (2 studies) appropriate prescribing (7 studies), reduction of physical restraints (3 studies), management of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (6 studies), falls reduction and prevention (11 studies), quality improvement (9 studies), philosophy of care (10 studies) and other (5 studies). No single intervention component, combination of, or increased number of components was associated with greater likelihood of positive outcomes. Studies with positive outcomes for residents also tended to change staff behavior, however changing staff behavior did not necessarily improve resident outcomes. Studies targeting specific care tasks (e.g. oral care, physical restraints) were more likely to produce positive outcomes than those requiring global practice changes (e.g. care philosophy). Studies using intervention theories were more likely to be successful. Program logic was rarely articulated, so it was often unclear whether there was a coherent connection between the intervention components and measured outcomes. Many studies reported barriers relating to staff (e.g. turnover, high workload, attitudes) or organizational factors (e.g. funding, resources, logistics). Conclusion Changing staff practice in nursing homes is possible but complex. Interventionists should consider barriers and feasibility of program components to impact on each intended outcome.

Determinants of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia: A scoping review of the evidence

BACKGROUND Behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) are prevalent in people with neurodegenerative diseases. PURPOSE In this scoping review the Kales, Gitlin and Lykestos framework is used to answer the question: What high quality evidence exists for the patient, caregiver and environmental determinants of five specific BPSD: aggression, agitation, apathy, depression and psychosis? METHOD An a priori review protocol was developed; 692 of 6013 articles retrieved in the search were deemed eligible for review. Goughs Weight of Evidence Framework and the Cochrane Collaborations tool for assessing risk of bias were used. The findings from 56 high quality/low bias articles are summarized. DISCUSSION Each symptom had its own set of determinants, but many were common across several symptoms: neurodegeneration, type of dementia, severity of cognitive impairments, and declining functional abilities, and to a lesser extent, caregiver burden and communication. CONCLUSION Research and policy implications are relevant to the National Plan to Address Alzheimers Disease.

The Trajectory of Tolerance for Wandering-related Boundary Transgression: An Exploration of Care Staff and Family Perceptions.

Purpose of the Study This study aimed to explore the experience of living with and caring for a person with dementia who wanders and transgresses boundaries into out-of-bounds and potentially hazardous areas (wandering-related boundary transgression [BT]), from the perspective of family members and care staff. Design and Methods This descriptive qualitative study utilized four focus groups with care staff (n = 28), one with family members (n = 4), and individual interviews (n = 8) with family members. Content analysis generated key concepts that formed the basis of the development of a theoretical understanding of the experience. Results and Implications Care staff and families described wandering-related BT as a common dementia-related behavior in residential aged care (RAC). Drawing on the generated concepts, a complex theoretical trajectory of tolerance for BT was developed. At one end of the trajectory, BT was perceived as being beyond the control of the individual and when unwitnessed by others, having little or no impact. Tolerance for BT shifted when the BT was witnessed by others, and potentially unsafe consequences for the person who wanders or their coresidents were experienced. Under the latter circumstances, BT was perceived as a troubling behavior that needed more effective management. Underpinning the complexity of this behavior was a constantly shifting perception of how hazardous this behavior might be, a factor that appeared to contribute to the challenges faced by families and care staff.

People with dementia getting lost in Australia: Dementia‐related missing person reports in the media

This study aimed to understand the circumstances in which people with dementia become lost, and the outcomes of these incidents.

Association between social interaction and affect in nursing home residents with dementia

ABSTRACT Background: Social interactions that lead to positive affect are fundamental to human well-being. However, individuals with dementia are challenged to achieve positive social interaction. It is unclear how social interactions influence affect in people with dementia. This study examined the association between social interactions and affect in nursing home residents with dementia. Methods: This repeated measures study used baseline data from a clinical trial in which 126 residents from 12 nursing homes were enrolled. Participants were video recorded twice daily on five days. Ratings of social interaction and affect were taken from the videotapes using the Interacting with People subscale of the Passivity in Dementia and the Philadelphia Geriatric Center Apparent Affect Rating Scale. Linear mixed models were used for analysis. Results: Social interaction was significantly related to higher interest and pleasure at within- and between-person levels. Social interaction significantly predicted anxiety and sadness at the between-person level only. Residents with higher cognitive function also displayed greater pleasure. Greater interest and anxiety was evident during the afternoon hours. Conclusions: This study supports the impact of social interactions on positive and negative affect. Findings can guide intervention development, aimed at promoting positive social interactions and improving affect for people with dementia.

Recruitment of Individuals With Dementia and Their Carers for Social Research: Lessons Learned From Nine Studies

Many health and social care research studies report difficulties recruiting sufficient numbers of participants, adding to time and money expenditures and potentially jeopardizing the generalizability of findings. The current article reports the effectiveness and resource requirements of recruitment strategies used in nine dementia-related studies conducted in Australia. Articles, notices, or advertisements in targeted specialist newsletters were the most cost-effective method of recruitment. The use of service providers to aid recruitment yielded mixed results, but was lengthy in terms of research time. Online and social media were low cost but not reliably effective in terms of recruitment potential. Despite using multiple strategies to maximize recruitment, significant challenges were encountered achieving the required sample sizes; in most cases these challenges resulted in delays in the recruitment phase. Implications for researchers in the fields of dementia and general social/health research are discussed. [Res Gerontol Nurs. 2018; 11(3):119-128.].

NonPharmacological interventions for managing wandering in the community: A narrative review of the evidence base

Dementia-related wandering is exhibited by as many as 63% of people with dementia living in the community. There is strong evidence that people with dementia who wander are at risk of life-threatening outcomes including injury from falls, exhaustion, weight loss, and becoming lost. Furthermore, carers have reported that fear of a person with dementia becoming lost contributes to them taking extreme measures in an attempt to maintain safety at home and there are few guidelines to direct care practices. Previous literature reviews of interventions to manage wandering have been inconclusive as the quality of research resulted in most studies being excluded. This narrative review aimed to report on the current state of wandering intervention science for people with dementia cared for in the community. An extensive search of articles and grey literature published between January 1999 and November 2017 was conducted and included quantitative studies that reported findings of nonpharmacological interventions for people with dementia living in the community that reported outcome measures of wandering characteristics (e.g., frequent ambulation, pacing, and boundary transgression). Eleven papers met the inclusion criteria, the majority of which were small nonrandomised studies or case studies with interventions that focused on: engaging the person with dementia in an activity, improving safety with environmental modifications, and technology to improve navigation or to monitor movement. While the strength of the evidence was low, the review has identified some promising interventions that carers of people with dementia could trial to reduce risky aspects of wandering, as well as identifying potential directions for future research.