CAREPARTNER-ASSISTED INTERVENTION TO IMPROVE ORAL HEALTH FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH MILD DEMENTIA: QUALITATIVE RESULTS. (11th November 2018) - Anderson, R
Abstract: We used the adaptive leadership framework for chronic illness to develop an intervention paired with tailored oral hygiene instruction that assisted carepartners and individuals with mild dementia (IMD) to collaborate in addressing adaptive challenges and prepare carepartners to lead in adaptive work to improve oral hygiene for IMD. Ten dyads were enrolled in the study. Post-intervention, we conducted semi-structured interviews with the dyads (N=8) enrolled in the treatment group to understand their experience in the intervention. Participants described their adaptive challenges and adaptive work and how they were able to engage in learning new skills. We found that IMD could learn new oral-hygiene skills when learning at their own pace, the dyads worked together to engage in adaptive work, and carepartners developed strategies to work with IMD improving communication and creating routines, providing implications of tackling many other challenges that IMD and their care partners face.