Acceptance of Global Positioning System (GPS) Technology Among Dementia Clients and Family Caregivers

The purpose of this study was to examine the acceptance of Global Positioning System (GPS) used to help people with dementia, who are at risk for wandering in their communities. We used a mixed methods research approach that included use logs, pre and post paper-based questionnaires, and focus groups. Forty-five client-caregiver pairs (dyads) were included to use one of the GPS devices for an average of 5.8 months over a 1-year period. GPS acceptance was high; dyads were likely to continue using the GPS. According to the participants, the GPS provided caregivers peace of mind and reduced anxiety in dyads when clients got lost.     

A federal survey deficiency citation is needed for resident-to-resident aggression in U.S. nursing homes

Resident-to-resident aggression (RRA) in nursing homes is a prevalent and concerning public health problem. A rapid growth in the number of research studies has led to advancements in understanding and awareness of these incidents. However, no state survey deficiency citation (F-Tag) currently exists to capture RRA in a structured way in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) nursing homes F-Tags Coding System. This omission represents a major barrier to State Survey Agencies, CMS, consumers, and care advocacy organizations’ efforts to keep vulnerable and frail residents safe and free from psychological harm. The commentary makes the case for development and implementation of a new RRA-specific F-Tag by identifying 20 problem areas and the ways in which this F-Tag could address them. The new F-Tags Coding System (part of the new Federal Nursing Home regulations) represents a rare and time-sensitive opportunity to bridge this major gap in practice, research, and policy.     

Controlling behaviour using neuroleptic drugs: the role of the Mental capacity act 2005 in protecting the liberty of people with dementia

The use of neuroleptic drugs to mediate the behaviour of people with dementia living in care homes can lead to them being deprived of their liberty. Whilst regulation has been successful in reducing neuroleptic prescribing in the USA, policy guidance has been unsuccessful in reducing the use of these drugs in the UK. Yet the Mental capacity act 2005 aimed to protect the liberty of people lacking capacity and provided safeguards to ensure that they are not inappropriately deprived of their liberty in institutions. This article highlights the potential for using this law to identify when neuroleptic prescribing in care homes would deprive people with dementia of their liberty and, in turn, to act as a check on prescribing levels. However, the extent to which the Act can promote and protect the right to liberty of people with dementia is constrained by a lack of access to social rights.     

Estimation from current-status data in continuous time

The nonparametric maximum likelihood estimator for current-status data has been known for at least 40 years, but only recently have the mathematical-statistical properties been clarified. This note provides a case study in the important and often studied context of estimating age-specific immunization intensities from a seroprevalence survey. Fully parametric and spline-based alternatives (also based on continuous-time models) are given. The basic reproduction number R ₀ exemplifies estimation of a functional. The limitations implied by the necessarily rather restrictive epidemiological assumptions are briefly discussed.     

电磁波斜入射到分层有耗媒质上的反射和传输系数

为了解决结构型吸收材料的分析和设计中所遇到的反射系数和传输系数的计算问题,提出一种有效的计算方法。此方法简单易行,为结构材料的计算机辅助分析和设计提供了基础。     

Developing the NICE/SCIE Guidelines for Dementia Care: The Challenges of Enhancing the Evidence Base for Social and Health Care

Internationally, interest is developing in the challenges ofdeveloping evidence-based guidelines for social work practice.The paper reports on the process of establishing the UK’sfirst joint health and social care evidence-based practice guideline,which is in dementia care. The paper addresses the methodologicaland procedural challenges of reviewing, meta-analysing and synthesizingknowledge for health and social care given the contrasting historiesof the two sectors in relation to the emergence of evidence-basedpractice. Dementia care is a complex domain within which socialand clinical perspectives intersect, reinforcing the desirabilityof producing ‘joined up’ health and social carepractice guidelines that are relevant to integrated services.It is suggested that the exemplar of producing a joint healthand social care guideline for dementia may be a model for futuredevelopment of practice guidelines. Some of the main recommendationsare presented to illustrate the character of the joint guideline,lessons are drawn for future guideline development, and implicationsfor policy and practice implementation are considered.     

Which Neuropsychiatric Disorder Is More Associated With Divorce?

The social disruption experienced by people with neuropsychiatric disorders may be pervasive and manifest in divorce. It has been estimated that 90% of marriages involving a partner with bipolar disorder culminate in divorce. To verify this information we studied the results of the 2004 National Nursing Home Survey. We found that the percentage of divorced residents was 7%. However, “lonesome” status (widowed, divorced, separated, never married, and single) was prevailing in 79% of residents. The rates of divorce were highest among bipolar, paranoid, and schizophrenic residents (18%, 12%, and 12%, respectively). Lonesome status was also highest among bipolar, paranoid, and schizophrenic residents (85%, 84%, and 83%, respectively). Never married status was highest among those with schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive residents, and bipolar patients (12%, 12%, and 11%, respectively). We conclude that shizophrenic and bipolar patients are very likely to never get married or to end up divorced.     

Dementia Caregiving in the Context of Late‐Life Remarriage: Support Networks,Relationship Quality,and Well‐being

Caregiving research has not accounted for increasingly diverse and complex marital and family histories of older Americans. The authors examined social relations and care‐specific positive and negative support networks among late‐life remarried wife dementia caregivers (N = 61) to determine associations among network structure, relationship quality with and support received from network members, and global assessments of family and stepfamily disagreement on caregiver well‐being. Own family and friends predominated in the social relations and positive networks. Although over half (54%) of respondents included a stepfamily member in their positive networks, stepchildren comprised the largest group (35%) in the negative networks. Larger negative networks and actively negative interactions were related to greater caregiver burden, and more global disagreement with stepfamily was associated with greater depression and burden. The findings illustrate the complex nature of support and the value of targeted examinations of caregiving support dynamics among late‐life remarried older adults and stepfamilies facing health demands.     

Design Characteristics of Sensory Gardens in Norwegian Nursing Homes: A Cross-Sectional E-Mail Survey

ABSTRACT

Sensory gardens are increasingly popular in Norwegian nursing homes. This study examined the design characteristics of Norwegian sensory gardens using a cross-sectional web survey design addressing nursing home leaders (n = 121). The findings revealed that Norwegian sensory gardens were generally compliant with recommended design guidelines involving sensory experiences, stable walkways, landmarks, accessibility, visibility from indoors, seating features, and prosthetic supports. There is, however, a potential for further improvements concerning walkways with rails, access to alarm systems, clear signposts to toilets from the outdoors, lighting in the evenings, greenhouses, increased awareness of edible and nontoxic plants, and maintenance of the gardens.     

Conquering Depression and Anxiety Through Exercise,by Keith Johnsgard

No abstract available for this article.