MIAMI: The needs of people with late stage dementia are not being met, new research* has found.
The findings, funded by Marie Curie and carried out by the Marie Curie Palliative Care Research Department at University College London, is based on in-depth interviews with a range of health and social care professionals. It reveals that, despite having complex needs, people with advanced dementia often receive fragmented and inadequate care at the end of life. Many who were interviewed felt strongly that skilled nursing homes were “ill equipped” to provide adequate end of life care for residents with dementia.
Skilled nursing home staff reported poor morale and frustration that they are not provided with adequate training and support to recognise and respond to the complex symptoms presented by people with dementia. Many of those interviewed highlighted that skilled nursing homes are often isolated within the wider health and social care network and may not have access to specialist resources, such as palliative and end of life care services, in the same way that NHS-based services, such as hospitals do. Where help from external specialists such as speech and language therapists or tissue viability nurses was required, waiting times resulted in delays to care…