PROTOCOL: Effects of social prescribing for older adults: An evidence and gap map.

Objectives This is the protocol for an evidence and gap map. The objectives are as follows: The aim of this evidence and gap map is to map the available evidence on the effectiveness of social prescribing interventions addressing a non-medical, health-related social need for older adults in any setting. Specific objectives are as follows: 1.To identify existing evidence from primary studies and systematic reviews on the effects of community-based interventions that address non-medical, health-related social needs of older adults to improve their health and wellbeing.2.To identify research evidence gaps for new high-quality primary studies and systematic reviews.3.To highlight evidence of health equity considerations from included primary studies and systematic reviews.

Exploring the factors that influence equitable access to and social participation in dementia care programs by foreign-born population living in Toronto and Durham region.

This paper reports the findings of a qualitative study conducted in Ontario, Canada with the purpose of identifying the barriers and facilitating factors of access to dementia care by foreign-born individuals, including immigrants and refugees. Interview data revealed seven overarching themes related to access and participation in dementia care programs by migrants, including structural, process, and outcome barriers. Our study findings suggest that incorporating culturally inclusive activity components in recreational dementia care programs will promote program participation by individuals from ethno-cultural backgrounds. It is essential to train health care providers to assist with building competence in working with people from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds. To prevent normalization of symptoms of dementia and promote timely access to dementia care, it is important to focus on generating awareness and acknowledgement of dementia as an illness rather than as a normal part of aging or a condition associated with stigmatization.

Living well with dementia: The role volunteer-based social recreational programs in promoting social connectedness of people with dementia and their caregivers.

Objectives: This evaluation study was designed to examine the factors that contribute the promotion of social connectedness among people with dementia and their caregivers through social recreational programs; develop an understanding of volunteer's impact on program success; and identify the barriers and facilitators to improve the volunteer-based programs to promote social connectedness.Method: A qualitative descriptive research design was used to explore the study participants' lived experiences of social recreational programs from Alzheimer's Society of Durham Region (ASDR) in Ontario, Canada. A final sample of 31 participants was recruited including people with dementia, informal caregivers, and community volunteers. Qualitative data was collected through face-to-face semi-structured interviews. Emerging themes were derived from the qualitative descriptive data using thematic analysis.Results: The qualitative interviews highlighted the impact of social recreational programs on people with dementia, caregivers and volunteers in the promotion of social connectedness, as well as the examination of barriers and facilitators to identify opportunities for the future improvement of ASDR programs that would benefit the dementia populations. The study findings revealed that the project 'Living Well with Dementia' has been able to successfully foster social connectedness through its volunteer-led social recreational programs by promoting the physical and mental well-being of people with dementia and their caregivers.Conclusion: Our study findings underscored the critical roles of volunteers who contributed to the success of community-based programs. Future research is needed to identify the opportunities to address current gaps in services and to strengthen the social recreational programs using evidence-based practices and client-centered approaches.Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at http://doi.org/10.1080/13607863.2021.1950614.