Care for Residents with Dementia in an Assisted Living Facility

Abstract

The purpose of this prospective, ethnographic study was to describe and analyze the care of residents with dementia in an assisted living facility (ALF) providing dementia care. Participant observation and interviews with 20 employees were used to obtain data. Data were collected and analyzed over a period of 6 months. Four major themes emerged from the data: (a) Caregivers' Level of Knowledge of Dementia, (b) Caregivers' Lack of Knowledge in Preventing or Assessing Acute Illnesses, (c) Limitations in Monitoring and Reporting Resident Changes, and (d) Inappropriate Medication Administration. Forty percent of the residents (N = 35) were admitted to the hospital over 6 months. The problems in providing quality care in this facility demonstrate the need for gerontological nurses in ALFs, who would improve care by assessing and monitoring the residents and by supervising and educating the caregivers.

Mapping empirical experiences of Tom Kitwood's framework of person‐centred care for persons with dementia in institutional settings. A scoping review

“…Staff acted in a person‐centred way by facilitating residents’ interests in stimuli, thus revealing residents’ personal identities and preferences . In the study by Sharpp , the challenges of providing person‐centred care consisted of an administrative conflict of providing quality care versus making a profit; untrained caregivers who lacked knowledge of person‐centred care; and lack of consistency in monitoring, assessing and communicating residents’ healthcare needs. To overcome these challenges, Sharpp advocated for employment of gerontological nurses at the assisted living facility to teach caregivers person‐centred care, thereby improving the environment and the quality of life for residents with dementia.…”

“…The qualifications and experiences of care staff in institutional settings may also affect the environment. Thus, in order to change the mental environment in an assisted living facility, Sharpp called for a change in the administrative practices of the facility, as well as further education of care staff.…”

“…The environment was identified as a category in three studies (34)(35)(36). improved the mealtime experience for people with dementia, and formal caregivers provided a more person-centred form of care.…”

<p>Preventing The Abuse Of Residents With Dementia Or Alzheimer’s Disease In The Long-Term Care Setting: A Systematic Review</p>

“…Five facilitator themes were identified, and their occurrence, frequency sum, and percent frequency are shown in Table 1. The theme most often mentioned was policies/programs; identified in 24/64 of total occurrences (41%) 13,14,17,20–23,26,28,29,32,34,36,38,41. Policies/programs refer to the implementation of any new type of company policy or any program initiated within the facility or by local or federal means intended to enable the ability to reduce abuse of residents with either dementia or Alzheimer’s 13,20,26,36.…”

“…A second facilitator was education, which was mentioned in 14/64 occurrences (24%) 16,17,21,31,32,36–38,40. Continuing education and/or targeted training will sensitize the less-experienced and less-qualified personnel to the nuances of health issues that afflict their residents 16.…”