Defining Person Centred Care: The Views of People with Dementia, Family Carers and Professionals

Bamford, C; Poole, M; Hughes, J; Kirkley, C; Arksey, H; Corner, L; Bond, J

doi:10.1093/geront/gnp147

Defining Person Centred Care: The Views of People with Dementia, Family Carers and Professionals

Lookup NU author(s): Claire Bamford ORCiD, Dr Marie Poole, Joan Hughes, Dr Lynne Corner, Professor John Bond

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Abstract

Delivering person-centred care continues to be a key aspiration for services, including those providing respite care. However, there is little consensus over the meaning of person-centred care in academic literature and little explicit guidance in UK policy documents. As part of a broader study, we conducted focus groups and face-to-face interviews to explore the components of person-centred care from the perspectives of six people with dementia, 16 family carers and 21 professionals. Additional data were drawn from 58 telephone interviews with a range of professionals. Nine components of person-centred care were identified: - Respecting individuality and values - Enhancing psychological wellbeing - Promoting autonomy - Promoting a sense of shared responsibility - Fostering social context & relationships - Enhancing communication - Meeting physical & personal needs - Developing a therapeutic alliance - Valuing expertise Subsequent observation within six contrasting respite care services provided examples of how each component was promoted or undermined in day-to-day practice. These data will be used to illustrate the components at both a conceptual and practical level. The relative importance of components varied between groups of stakeholders, with people with dementia placing most emphasis on social context and relationships; family carers focusing on psychological well-being; and professionals emphasising individuality and values. The data also indicate wide variations in the extent to which the components are achieved in practice. The potential use of the components of person-centred care for service evaluation will be explored.