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Challenging behaviours in nursing home residents with dementia: a randomized controlled trial of multidisciplinary interventions
Author(s) -
Opie Janet,
Doyle Colleen,
O'Connor Daniel W.
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
international journal of geriatric psychiatry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.28
H-Index - 129
eISSN - 1099-1166
pISSN - 0885-6230
DOI - 10.1002/gps.493
Subject(s) - psychosocial , psychological intervention , dementia , medicine , randomized controlled trial , nursing , intervention (counseling) , nursing homes , psychology , psychiatry , disease , surgery , pathology
Objectives To test the premise that individually tailored psychosocial, nursing and medical interventions to nursing home residents with dementia will reduce the frequency and severity of behavioural symptoms. Methods A four‐member team comprising a psychiatrist, psychologist and nurses conducted detailed assessments of 99 nursing home residents with advanced dementia who were rated by staff as having frequent, severe behavioural disturbances. Residents were then randomly assigned to an ‘early’ or ‘late’ intervention group and observed for four weeks. Interventions encompassed psychosocial strategies, nursing approaches, psychotropic medications and management of pain. Outcome measures included the frequency and severity of disruptive behaviours and assessments of change by senior nursing home staff. Results While improvements in behaviour were noted in both groups from the outset of observations, pointing to a powerful Hawthorne effect, consultancies were associated with a modest but statistically significant decrease in challenging behaviours. Staff assessments of the interventions were highly favourable. Conclusions The consultancies were effective and well received by staff. The change‐inducing nature of any new endeavour is an integral part of research in a long‐term setting. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.