Background: Because the pattern of illnesses changes in an aging population and many people manage to live well with chronic diseases, a group of health care professionals recently proposed reformulating the static WHO definition of health towards a dynamic one based on the ability to physically, mentally and socially adapt and self-manage. This paper is the result of a collaborative action of the INTERDEM Social Health Taskforce to operationalize this new health concept for people with dementia, more specifically the social domain, and to formulate directions for research and practice to promote social health in dementia. Method: Based on the expertise of the Social Health Taskforce members (N = 54) three groups were formed that worked on operationalizing the three social health dimensions described by Huber et al.: (1) capacity to fulfil potential and obligations; (2) ability to manage life with some degree of independence; (3) participation in social activities. For each dimension also influencing factors, effective interventions and knowledge gaps were inventoried. After a consensus meeting, the operationalizations of the dimensions were reviewed by the European Working Group of People with Dementia (EWGPWD). Results: The social health dimensions could be well operationalized for people with dementia and are assessed as very relevant according to the Social Health Taskforce and EWGPWD. Personal (e.g. sense of coherence, competencies), disease-related (e.g. severity of cognitive impairments, comorbidity), social (support from network, stigma) and environmental factors (e.g. enabling design, accessibility) that can influence the person with dementia's social health and many interventions promoting social health were identified. Conclusion: A consensus-based operationalization of social health in dementia is proposed, and factors that can influence, and interventions that improve, social health in dementia identified. Recommendations are made for research and practice.

We aimed to identify assistive technologies that are promising for addressing loneliness in people living with dementia in long-term care.A scoping review was conducted. EBSCO, PubMed, Cochrane Lib...

Social robots are increasingly used in the care of older adults, including people living with dementia. An important prerequisite for effective use is knowledge about which factors facilitate and hinder the acceptance of social robots. The aim of this review at the intersection of health care research and human–robot interaction research is to understand factors facilitating and hindering the acceptance of social robots for older adults and people living with dementia in nursing homes based on the Almere model and to identify research gaps. We conducted a scoping review, systematically searching MEDLINE, PsycINFO, CINAHL and Compendex. The Almere model of acceptance was used to guide the development and conduct of this review. We used the principles of deductive content analysis, and we narratively present the review results. Twenty-six studies were included in the review. We found facilitating and/or hindering factors for all constructs of the Almere model. Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and perceived enjoyment were the most studied constructs, whereas trust and intention to use were the least studied constructs. Across constructs, seeing robots positively impacting residents was one of the key facilitating factors, and practical difficulties were a hindering factor. The Almere model provided useful insight into the acceptance of social robots. Nevertheless, we found the concept of engagement, the nursing home context, the intervention characteristics and the individual user groups important for the acceptance of social robots in nursing homes and therefore argue for future research expanding on the model.

Based on a targeted literature review, this vision paper emphasizes the importance of dementia-sensitive built space. The article specifically focuses on supporting spatial orientation and wayfinding for people living with dementia. First, we discuss types of wayfinding challenges, underlying processes, and consequences of spatial disorientation in the context of dementia of the Alzheimer’s type. Second, we focus on current efforts aimed at planning and evaluating dementia-sensitive built space, i.e., environmental design principles, interventions, evaluation tools, strategies, and planning processes. Third, we use our findings as a starting point for developing an interdisciplinary research vision aimed at encouraging further debates and research about: (1) the perspective of a person with dementia, specifically in the context of wayfinding and spatial orientation, and (2) how this perspective supplements planning and design processes of dementia-sensitive built space. We conclude that more closely considering the perspective of people with dementia supports the development of demographically sustainable future cities and care institutions.

Participatory approaches are increasingly required and used in research. In this review, we examined the impact (benefits and disadvantages) of participatory dementia research on researchers as potential key actors to sustainably implement the participatory approach. Our aim was to provide information on how the participatory process could be improved. We conducted a systematic literature review covering the Cochrane Library, PsycNet, PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar. The inclusion criteria for publications were as follows: research (1) involving people with dementia as co-researchers, (2) including a description or discussion of the impact of participatory research for researchers, (3) published between 2000 and 2020, and (4) in English. We performed a quality assessment of the included publications. Our final review included nine publications; three categorized as high quality, five as medium quality, and one as low quality. Four of the publications categorized as high or medium quality implemented participation at the level of partnership, and two publications implemented participation at the level of delegated power. The beneficial impact of participatory dementia research on researchers consisted of an increased understanding of people with dementia that widened researchers’ theoretical knowledge and perspectives and increased their competence in working with people with dementia. Disadvantages comprised the required additional effort and time as well as the difficulty of establishing a balanced relationship between researchers and co-researchers. Disadvantages may result from the lack of a definition and structure of participatory research and a lack of training on both sides. More well-designed and transparent methods of evaluating participatory research projects are needed.

Background: Employees’ decision to speak up or to stay silent can have implications for health care providers, employees and people who need care. As a result, a shift is needed from blindly following guidelines to implementing a sustainable proactive organizational culture in which employees, especially nurses, can evaluate their work environment and take advantage of growth opportunities. The aim of this review is to analyse the characteristics of employee voice opportunities in the health care context, particularly for nurses. Methods: The search was conducted in April 2023 in the following databases: MEDLINE via PubMed, CINHAL via EBSCO, Scopus via Elsevier, Wiley/Web of Science and Cochrane Library. The search results were imported into the COVIDENCE program and screened by two researchers separately. We used the following search components: health care organization, opportunities, and employee voice. The review followed the PRISMA-ScR guidelines. We identified 951 studies in five databases and via citation tracking. After we removed 102 duplicates and screening 839 titles and abstracts, 23 full texts were assessed. According to our inclusion and exclusion criteria, we included 9 studies. Results: Three main characteristics of employee voice opportunities that need to be considered to enable nurses to have a voice in the organization were identified. These main categories are individual factors, organizational culture, and available voice channels. It is not possible to rank them in order of importance; they are interrelated. Conclusions: To conclude, employee voice is a process. In order for utilize employee voice opportunities, individual employee factors, organizational culture and its embedded context must be considered. Individual internal and external motivation, which is influenced by socio-cultural aspects and work hierarchies, must also be considered for successful use of opportunities.