Dementia Cafés as Hubs to Promote Community-Integrated Care for Dementia through Enhancement of the Competence of Citizen Volunteer Staff Using a New Assessment Tool.

INTRODUCTION: Dementia cafés have recently been attracting attention. The increased involvement of citizen volunteers and the competence of dementia café staff could enhance the potential of dementia cafés. The aim of the present study was to examine enhancement of the competence of citizen volunteers using a new assessment tool. METHODS: This cross-sectional analysis included 433 dementia café staff members, including medical and care professionals and citizen volunteers. A 20-item dementia café staff self-assessment (DCSA) instrument was newly developed. After confirmation of the reliability and validity of the instrument, DCSA scores among citizen volunteers were evaluated. RESULTS: DCSA showed very good psychometric properties. The mean (±SD) DCSA score was significantly higher for café staff with a medical and care professional background (n = 267) than for citizen volunteers (n = 166) (2.2±0.5 vs. 1.7±0.7, respectively; p < 0.001). The DCSA scores of citizen volunteers became significantly higher with increasing attendance (minimum: n = 24; 1.3±0.7; intermediate: n = 65; 1.6±0.6; and frequent: n = 77; 1.8±0.7; p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Assessment of the competence of dementia café staff using the DCSA revealed the potential of citizen volunteers. This tool could also enhance the potential of dementia cafés.

Perspectives of people living with dementia and their care partners about the impact on social health when participating in a co-designed Dementia café.

Those diagnosed with dementia and those who provide care and support often feel socially isolated with limited opportunities for social engagement, increasing the potential for loneliness and further isolation that is detrimental to social health. This study examined how a co-designed dementia café impacted on the self-reported social health of community dwelling people with dementia and their care partners in the North-West of England. Semi-structured interviews were conducted at two time periods (summer of 2019 and spring of 2020), with five people living with dementia and eight care partners. The key finding was that participating in the cafés led to a sense of belonging and purpose that was beneficial to well-being and social health for all participants. Community-based initiatives that provide opportunities for peer support for the person with the diagnosis and the care partner are essential so that people living with dementia may rebuild their confidence as well as retaining opportunities to socialise.

A qualitative evaluation of the impact of a Good Life Club on people living with dementia and care partners.

BACKGROUND: Research suggests there is a lack of post-diagnostic support to enable people living with dementia to fulfil social and active lives throughout their dementia journey. Gardening has been found to have many benefits for people living with dementia. Although such research is important, most research frames people with dementia as passive recipients of stimulation. Research into the impact of a community-based gardening group, where people living with dementia are active in the development of an outdoor space, is underdeveloped. Knowledge about the impact of participating in such groups is also sparse. The Good Life Club (GLC) was co-developed and evaluated to respond to these gaps. OBJECTIVES: The primary aim of this article is to present the findings regarding the impact of attending the GLC on the self-reported well-being for people living with dementia and care partners. METHODS: Qualitative data were collected via 22 semi-structured interviews. Fourteen interviews were conducted before the GLC and eight after the GLC. Thematic analysis was used to analyse data. Dementia Care Mapping data were collected to supplement the interview data. FINDINGS: Four key themes were identified. The first was that participants considered having active participation in social life to be a key aspect of living a good life. The second was that the way that the GLC was set up and delivered gave the participants ownership of the GLC and within this they felt able to contribute. The third was the importance of social connectedness and peer support to the well-being of both people living with dementia and care partners. Fourth, positive mood and well-being was directly experienced through gardening. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of long-term investment of time and energy to the GLC, ongoing friendships and in-session autonomy act as key ingredients in creating a group that is relaxed, full of humour and highly valued.

Dementia Cafés as a Community Resource for Persons With Early-Stage Cognitive Disorders: A Nationwide Survey in Japan.

OBJECTIVES: Dementia cafés are expected to serve as a new community resource based on the national dementia strategy in Japan. The objective of the present study was to examine effective ways to manage dementia cafés through an overview of dementia cafés in Japan and an analysis of the factors related to their effectiveness on attendees. DESIGN: Cross-sectional analysis. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Representatives of 1477 dementia cafés in Japan. MEASURES: Questionnaires regarding the dementia cafés' characteristics, management members, staff, their guests and effectiveness on people with dementia, their families, and community members were sent to the cafés, with instructions to have them completed by the café representatives. Logistic regression analysis was performed with the effect on each guest attribute as a dependent variable, and factors related to the effectiveness of dementia cafés were analyzed. RESULTS: Questionnaires were sent to a total of 2728 dementia cafés in Japan, and responses were received from 1477 (54.1%). The most common meeting frequency and meeting hours were once a month (64.8%) and 2 hours (53.8%), respectively. Analysis of the effectiveness of dementia cafés on 3 groups of guests indicated the following preferences for café program: people with dementia preferred frequent meetings and activities, families of people with dementia preferred having a place for private consultation and advice and peer meetings, and community members preferred frequent meetings and both mini-lectures and private consultation and advice. Logistic regression analysis further revealed that all types of guests preferred the presence of the same types of guests. CONCLUSIONS/IMPLICATIONS: This study revealed the multicomponent nature of dementia cafés. The results suggest that a good balance of programs and guests would enhance the cafés' effectiveness among the multiple stakeholders in regard to dementia, especially in the early stage of the disease.

Validity of Test-linked Lecture on Disease Prevention by Pharmacy Students for Dementia Café Visitors and Evaluation of Continued Comprehension Degree / 社会薬学

This study aimed to assess the impact of a lecture on knowledge about dementia prevention conducted by pharmacy students for visitors at dementia café. A pre- and post-intervention design was used to evaluate comprehension, effectiveness, and retention of knowledge. The lecture focused on the diet and sleep regime recommended for dementia prevention. First, before the lecture, the visitors were asked to complete a written test that contained three multiple choice and four open-ended questions. The pre-test also asked questions related to a poster on the subject, to which the visitors were exposed in the café. After the lecture, a post-test was conducted with the same content as the pre-test. The analysis revealed that the post-test scores were significantly higher than the pre-test scores. Furthermore, participants took a remade test with three multiple choice and three open-ended questions. This additional test related to the questions on which the participants received low scores in the pre-test. The evaluation of the remade test was conducted over a period of four months. During all four months of the evaluation, the scores for the remade test were found to be above 75. The validity of the lecture and of knowledge retention were proved through these tests. Based on these results, it can be concluded that the lectures contributed to an increase in the knowledge of dementia prevention among the visitors at the café.