Quality of life in dementia in perspective

Abstract

de men tia d e m e n t i aAbstract Many different definitions of the concept of quality of life (QOL) are found in the literature. This raises the question as to which domains are viewed as really important by people with dementia and which are possibly based on views of others, such as (in)formal carers, or theoretical models. An explorative study was carried out among people with dementia living in the community and in nursing homes. Their opinions were compared to those of professional carers and to the current theoretical models and instruments for QOL in dementia. Data were gathered by means of interviews, focus groups and literature study. Most QOL domains mentioned as important by the persons with dementia were also acknowledged by the carers and in the literature. A few, however, were not mentioned by the carers (i.e. 'sense of aesthetics in living environment', 'financial situation' and 'being of use/giving meaning to life'), and not selected in the measuring instruments ('security and privacy', and 'self-determination and freedom'). This indicates differences in perspectives on quality of life between persons with dementia, their carers and theoretical models. Further research is recommended on this point.

The Determinants of Quality of Life of Nursing Home Residents with Young-Onset Dementia and the Differences between Dementia Subtypes

“…Another inevitable limitation of this study was the use of proxy reports to investigate residents' QoL. Dröes et al [28] found that there were differences in the perspectives on QoL between people with dementia and their caregivers. Also, the younger age of our residents could have influenced the proxy reports.…”

“…Moreover, in current research on YOD, unclear definitions of the concept of QoL are used, and therefore it is uncertain which specific aspects of QoL were measured [26] . The multidimensionality of the QoL construct stresses the importance of investigating QoL domains separately to provide clarity regarding the possible differences in specific QoL domains and thereby prevent a loss of information [27][28][29] .…”

Wellbeing-enhancing occupation and organizational and environmental contributors in long-term dementia care facilities: an explorative study

“…Research has shown, however, that residents with dementia still consider occupation to be important for their quality of life (Train et al, 2005;Dröes et al, 2006). Moreover, several studies show that occupation can have beneficial effects on the wellbeing of long-term care residents with dementia.…”

Quality of Life among Elderly Patients with Dementia in Institutions

“…Some authors argue that social demographic factors are related to quality of life [29,30]. However, a review paper concluded that neither age, gender nor education was associated with a lower quality of life in persons with dementia [31].…”