What makes for "good" communication from the perspectives of people diagnosed with dementia?

Abstract

The present thesis aimed to examine the experiences of good and meaningful communication from the perspectives of people living with dementia. It is presented to the reader as three separate papers. The first paper presents a systematic review of the existing literature that examines experiences of communication in people with dementia. Studies that elicited feedback from people with dementia, family caregivers, and healthcare professionals were included. A total of 15 studies were identified, though only one study examined the experience of communication directly from the perspectives of people with dementia while the other 14 studies focused on the perspectives of family caregivers and healthcare professionals. Results reveal a lack of research examining communication from the perspectives of people with dementia and therefore scientific understanding of this area is limited. Recommendations were suggested for future research to actively involve people with dementia and to understand their experiences as this would have significant clinical implications for person-centred care and training programmes. The second paper presents the empirical study which aimed to explore the experiences of good and meaningful communication from the perspectives of people with dementia. Nine dyads consisting of people with dementia and their family caregiver were recruited. Communications between the dyads were video-recorded and the persons with dementia were subsequently interviewed on their communicative experiences. Following thematic analysis, three superordinate themes emerged: sharing moments, empowering one's ability to communicate, and inhibitors to communication. The results suggested that feeling understood, valued, and heard by others allowed the person with dementia to feel confident and empowered to communicate and the person shared their immediate experiences such as their thoughts and feelings as well as their experiences of past events. However, if the person felt inferior, unheard, or pressured to appease others, communication reduced. The importance of including people with dementia in future research is discussed along with preliminary clinical implications. Paper three presents a critical appraisal of the processes involved in the undertaking of the two papers presented. Implications for future research and clinical practice are discussed.

Date of Award	31 Dec 2017
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	The University of Manchester
Supervisor	Sara Tai (Supervisor) & Warren Mansell (Supervisor)