There is a lack of technology that facilitates knowledge sharing in the medical sector. In several countries there is a shortage of medical staff with the proper education to take care of patients suffering from dementia. However, modern mobile and web technology pave the way for new online knowledge sharing platforms which could help remedy this problem. This study investigates how an interface of a mobile e-library, aimed at sharing dementia-related knowledge, could be created. It also examines how care workers perceive it and if they could be willing to adopt the technology in the future. This thesis project was carried out at Svenskt Demenscentrum, a non-profit organization with the purpose of disseminating and collecting knowledge concerning dementia. The prototype was designed using the double diamond process. This included an initial literature study and state-of-the-art analysis, which was followed by two workshops with professional care workers. The final design was created iteratively with feedback from a focus group. A total of four sessions with the focus group were organized. The final prototype was evaluated using the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) model. 12 participants took part in the user tests, all had previously taken care of patients suffering from dementia. The findings of the user tests suggest that the users perceived the interface as both useful and easy to use. This finding also indicates that the users, according to the TAM model, would be willing to adopt the technology if fully developed. All of the participants found the application fitting for smartphone devices. Some suggestions regarding further implementations of the interface included the addition of an onboarding process for those less familiar with modern design conventions and the inclusion of a social forum or discussion page that would allow for a direct knowledge exchange between the users. / Det finns en brist på teknologier som förenklar kunskapsdelning inom den medicinska sektorn. I flera länder har det dokumenterats en tilltagande brist vårdpersonal med tillräcklig utbildning för att ta hand om patienter som lider av demens. Kunskapsdelning kan underlättas med mobila onlineplattformar, utvecklade for att användare ska kunna dela expertis med varandra. Den här studien undersöker hur gränssnittet till ett mobilt e-bibliotek, med mal att dela demensrelaterade kunskaper, skulle kunna utvecklas. Den undersöker även om vårdpersonal och släktingar till demenssjuka kan förväntas anamma teknologin i framtiden. Detta masterarbete utfördes i samarbete med Svenskt Demenscentrum, en stiftelse som arbetar för att samla, strukturera och sprida kunskap om demens.  En prototyp for gränssnittet designades efter 'double Diamond'-modellen. Detta inkluderade genomförandet av en litteraturstudie, en 'state-of-the-art'-analys samt två workshops med professionell vårdpersonal. Den slutgiltiga designen togs fram iterativt med feedback från en fokusgrupp. Totalt organiserades fyra sessioner med fokusgruppen.  Den slutgiltiga prototypen utvärderades sedan efter 'Technology Acceptance'-modellen (TAM). Tolv deltagare rekryterades till användartesterna, alla med tidigare erfarenhet av demensvård, som vårdarbete eller släktingar. Resultatet från testerna antydde att användarna uppfattade prototypgranssnittet som både användbart och lättanvänt. I enlighet men TAM-modellen, implicerar detta att målgruppen är mottaglig för att använda en full implementation av teknologin. Alla deltagare uppfattade även prototypen som lämplig för 'smartphone'-enheter. Testdeltagarna lyfte även fram ett antal rekommendationer gällande vidareutvecklingen av gränssnittet. Bland annat föreslogs det att en 'onboarding'-process skulle kunna implementeras samt en diskussionssida; eller dylikt som skulle tillåta användarna att delta i ett direkt kunskapsutbyte med varandra.

No / Over the years there have been advances in the quality of care provision for people with dementia. How to measure the impact of care on the person with dementia has challenged researchers as, until recently, no evaluation tool offered a comprehensive overview of the behaviour patterns and well-being of persons with dementia. Dementia Care Mapping (DCM) is a tool used by care practitioners and researchers to capture both the process (behaviours) and outcome (well-being) of care and is therefore of use as a tool to evaluate quality of care. This study aims to assess, through DCM, the experience of dementia care provision in residential and nursing homes in two voluntary organizations in England. The data illustrates similarities in the well-being and behaviour patterns of 76 persons with dementia living in six care settings throughout England. Examples of instances when people with dementia were "put down" and when well-being was enhanced, are outlined. The homes in the study were meeting the physical care but not the broader psychosocial care needs of the observed residents. The action taken by the organizations as a result of the DCM evaluations is summarized.

No / Introduction Dementia Care Mapping (DCM) was originally developed as a clinical tool but has attracted interest as a potential observational measure of quality of life (QOL) and well-being of long-term care residents with dementia. DCM coding involves continuous observation over a 6-h period, with observers recording a Behavior Category Code (BCC, a recording of activity/interaction) and a Well/Ill Being (WIB) score at 5 min intervals. Method Descriptive data from several different research teams on the distribution and psychometric properties of DCM data were compiled and summarized. Results Issues and problems identified include: complex scoring algorithms, inter-rater reliability of the BCCs, limited variability of WIB values, associations between resident characteristics and DCM assessments, rater time burden, and comparability of results across study settings. Conclusions Despite the identified limitations, DCM has promise as a research measure, as it may come closer to rating QOL from the perspective of persons with dementia than other available measures. Its utility will depend on the manner in which it is applied and an appreciation of the measure's strength and limitations. Possible changes that might improve the reliability, validity, and practicality of DCM as a research tool include coding the predominant event (rather than the best event), shortening the observation period, and adding 0 as a neutral WIB coding option.

No / Objectives This paper describes DCM 8 and reports on the initial validation study of DCM 8. Methods Between 2001-2003, a series of international expert working groups were established to examine various aspects of DCM with the intention of revising and refining it. During 2004-2005 the revised tool (DCM 8) was piloted in seven service settings in the UK and validated against DCM 7th edition. Results At a group score level, WIB scores and spread of Behavioural Category Codes were very similar, suggesting that group scores are comparable between DCM 7 and 8. Interviews with mappers and focus groups with staff teams suggested that DCM 8 was preferable to DCM 7th edition because of the clarification and simplification of codes; the addition of new codes relevant to person-centred care; and the replacement of Positive Events with a more structured recording of Personal Enhancers. Conclusions DCM 8 appears comparable with DCM 7th edition in terms of data produced and is well received by mappers and dementia care staff.

No / Memories on film is the outcome of an 18-month study funded by the National Institute for Health Research’s School for Social Care Research. Based on the principles of Participatory Video (Milne et al 2012), the study used digital storytelling and co-production techniques to create short films with 10 participants in a Leeds dementia care facility. Choice of images and narrative content were decided by the participants, who were aged between 76 and 99 years, and had lived in Leeds for most if not all of their lives. Almost all of them decided to tell the story of their own early life and its defining events, and the participants’ own voices, both speaking and singing, feature on the soundtrack to their films. We made extensive use of local history websites, and archives such as Leodis, when putting the films together. We were particularly keen to find out whether the creation of digital stories with this group of people – who can experience isolation and marginalisation – would help to increase their social participation. As a result we are now interested, not only in discussing the film-making process and the study outcomes, but also in identifying opportunities to have the completed films hosted by other websites and community groups. The summative focus groups for the study identified a number of potential uses for the films, including inter-generational work with schools, staff development initiatives, and raising public awareness.

Yes / Visual sociology often relies for its content on researcher-created or participant-created images. In this article we discuss our use of existing local history archive images in a participatory film-making project with ten people living in residential dementia care in the Northern UK. We draw on the concept of archaeology in two ways: first, as used by Foucault (1972), who contends that archaeology is a metaphor for exploring traces left by the past in order to understand the present. Secondly, in a more obvious sense–many of the most salient cultural references for our participants related to public buildings and local landmarks that had been demolished, repurposed, or dramatically changed in appearance since their youth. / UK National Institute for Health Research – School for Social Care Research

No / This case outlines the rationale and methods used when carrying out ethnographic fieldwork in a care home environment with research participants who were living with a dementia diagnosis. Although concerns had been raised at ethics approval about the use of such methods – visual ethnography in particular – we found that there were ethical benefits for the participants whose capacity for research participation, and for social participation generally, was, in every case, higher than anticipated at the outset. By comparison we found that formal methods for assessing ability to give informed consent often appeared to create excess disability, and to exacerbate ill-being for people with dementia. The case draws on specific examples to show how issues related to methods and to ethical conduct of research are frequently intertwined, and should be considered together rather than in isolation.

Yes / The reuse of existing datasets to identify mechanisms for improving healthcare quality has been widely encouraged. There has been limited application within dementia care. Dementia Care Mapping (DCM) is an observational tool in widespread use, predominantly to assess and improve quality of care in single organisations. DCM data has the potential to be used for secondary purposes to improve quality of care. However, its suitability for such use requires careful evaluation. This study conducted in-depth interviews with 29 DCM users to identify issues, concerns and challenges regarding the secondary use of DCM data. Data was analysed using modified Grounded Theory. Major themes identified included the need to collect complimentary contextual data in addition to DCM data, to reassure users regarding ethical issues associated with storage and reuse of care related data and the need to assess and specify data quality for any data that might be available for secondary analysis. / This study was funded by the Faculty of Health Studies, University of Bradford.

In this study, certified nursing assistants (CNAs) who work regularly with long-term care residents with dementia were interviewed to investigate whether they considered providing social and emotional support to people with dementia an important part of their jobs. They were given an online survey, then each participated in an in-person interview that was recorded and later transcribed and analyzed for common themes. Through data analysis, I found that the participating CNAs unanimously considered social support to be an important aspect of caring for someone with dementia, and several personal values were associated with this perspective. They also reported the trainings they had received in preparation for dementia care were largely not sufficient to prepare them for interacting effectively with the residents. Additionally, they cited various other barriers that impede their ability to provide the social support they feel is necessary to provide. Overall, this sample of CNAs did not provide great diversity, and future research should compare these results to more diverse groups.

Within Assisted Living Facilities (ALFs), high staff turnover and the foreseeable future shortage in the workforce population have created a growing urgency to increase the retention of workers in this field. This study examines the experiences of care workers in the dementia care units (DCUs) of ALFs. The specific aims are to learn: 1) what these workers find frustrating and satisfying about their job; and 2) what are the individual-level (e.g., race, education, employment history) and facility-level (e.g., size of unit, workload) factors that affect how they feel about their job. We used qualitative data from interviews with 45 staff and observations gathered in DCUs in five ALFs that varied in size, location, and race of staff. Findings show that workers' sources of dissatisfaction included heavy workloads, lack of teamwork, and residents' racist remarks and other problem behaviors. Positive relationships with residents were a primary source of satisfaction.