Just 10 minutes of interaction a day improves wellbeing in dementia care, study claims

Just 10 minutes of social interaction a day helps improve the wellbeing of people living with dementia in care homes, a new study has found.

Research presented at Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC) suggested the average care home resident with dementia experiences only two minutes of social interaction each day.

Researchers also found that out of 170 available training programmes for care home staff, only three are evidence-based - none of which improve quality of life.

Professor Clive Ballard, of the University of Exeter Medical School, who led the research, said: “Just take a moment to imagine life with just two minutes of social interaction each day. To accept this is discrimination against people with dementia. We urgently need to do better.

"Most care home training programmes are not evidence-based. We know our programme works over the long-term and we now know it can be delivered remotely. We now need to roll this out to care homes.”

The Wellbeing and Health for people with Dementia (WHELD) programme trained care home staff to increase social interaction from two minutes a day to ten, combined with a programme of personalised care.

It involved simple measures such as talking to residents about their interests and involving them in decisions around their care.

Researchers found the e-learning programme improved meaningful social interaction with people who have dementia, improved their wellbeing and had sustained benefits.

Joanne McDermid of King’s College London, who presented the research, said: “Care home staff are under a lot of pressure – it’s a really tough job. It’s a challenging environment for both residents living with dementia and staff. Our programme moved care staff to see dementia through the eyes of those who are living it. We found a simple approach, delivered as e-learning, improves staff attitudes to care and residents’ wellbeing, ultimately improving lives for people with dementia.

“In a traditionally task-focused work environment, our programme reminds us of the human side; of the full life experience of those living with dementia in care.”

Dr Doug Brown, chief policy and research officer at Alzheimer’s Society, added: “With 70 per cent of people living in care homes having dementia, it is vital that staff have the right training to provide good quality dementia care. What we need is a person-centred approach to care, that takes into account each individual's unique qualities, abilities, interests, preferences and needs.

"This study supports what we know from our own research – training is crucial in order to provide this type of individualised care, activities and social interactions, which can have a significant impact of the well-being of people living with dementia in care homes."

The Improving Staff Attitudes and Care for People with Dementia e-Learning (tEACH) study, conducted by the University of Exeter Medical School and King’s College London in partnership with the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE), was presented at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference 2018. The study involved 280 residents and care staff in 24 care homes over nine months.