Person-centred oral hydration care for older people with dementia admitted to acute hospital wards: Empirical research qualitative.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To conduct an in-depth exploration of oral hydration care provided to people living with dementia in acute hospital wards, using a person-centred care framework. BACKGROUND: Oral hydration care is an important, yet rarely explored aspect of fundamental care for people with dementia admitted to acute hospitals. Using person-centred care as a conceptual framework we investigated how oral hydration care is delivered for people living with dementia in acute hospital wards. DESIGN: A qualitative, multiple-case study. The cases were three acute wards in one hospital. METHODS: Direct observation of care for 13 people with dementia (132 h), semistructured interviews with ward staff (n = 28), ward leaders (n = 4), organisational leaders (n = 5), people with dementia (n = 6), their relatives (n = 5), documentary analysis of clinical inpatient records (n = 26) and relevant hospital policies. Data were analysed using framework analysis. RESULTS: Four themes were identified: (1) The acute hospital: oral hydration is obscured and not prioritised (2) Overshadowing of oral hydration at ward level (3) Siloed nature of hydration roles (4) Strategies for, and barriers to, delivering person-centred oral hydration care. CONCLUSIONS: This study combines the concept of person-centred care and oral hydration care for people living with dementia admitted to acute hospital wards, demonstrating that person-centred hydration care was complex and not prioritised. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Nurses should consider means of improving prioritisation and cohesive delivery of person-centred hydration care in acute hospital wards.