Find out how social interaction can dramatically impact the quality of life of a person with dementia, revealed by a shocking report recently released in the media.
A recent Nursing Times article focused on a study that highlighted some shocking results. The study was completed by three British institutions: the University of Exeter, Kings College London and The Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust. The study is based on WHELD (The Improved Wellbeing and Health for People with Dementia), a trial completely unique and the biggest of its kind ever completed.
According to the study, a single hour each week of social interaction improved the quality of life for people living with dementia alongside personalised care. Sadly, many people living with dementia living in residential care homes experiences as little as two minutes social interaction a day.
This isn’t the fault of the care homes, but rather an overall issue in general. Many carers do struggle for time, and do struggle to provide the amount of social interaction needed to be beneficial to people living with dementia. Perhaps with this study though, it is now much more widely known how important social interaction is. There’s a focus on medication and personal care, but it hasn’t been highlighted that social interaction could have such a big impact on a person’s life. Now this study has come to light, it will help carers to provide a much better service to the 850,000 people in the UK currently living with dementia.
Live-in Care Can Help
Live-in care and homecare services already provide a high level of social interaction for all older people. In fact, the emphasis is on social interaction, and on ensuring that the client is happy and able to live as normal a life as possible. The carer does not simply live with the client, they become a companion for them and offer them plenty of conversation and opportunity to speak about things they enjoy and care about. It also enables the person to stay around everything that is familiar, which is very important to those with dementia. People living with dementia can struggle with change, so staying at home around the same things and people is so important to avoiding any trauma or deterioration in condition. Live-in care and homecare services are a really good option for those living with dementia for many different reasons including:
- Offering a high level of social interaction, proven to improve quality of life for those with dementia
- Avoiding a move to a care home, an immensely traumatic change for someone with dementia
- Enabling those living with dementia to maintain as normal a life as possible
- Enabling those with dementia to be safe in their own home, offering peace of mind to their friends and family
The Next Step
If you are interested in live-in care for your family member, the first step is to get a dementia diagnosis from your GP. You will then need a care assessment in order to get an idea of care costs. This will enable you to make as informed a decision as you can when it comes to later life care. As with this dementia study, the more you know, the more of an informed decision you can make, which can only benefit all involved.
