The experiences of healthcare professionals caring for persons living with dementia : a literature study

Living with dementia means to gradually loose cognitive functions. This leads to a need for help in the daily life. The purpose of this litterature study was to describe the experiences of healthcare professionals caring for people with dementia. Nine scientific articles were selected from Pubmed/Medline and Cinahl and these were analysed using manifest qualitative content analysis. The analysis resulted in seven categories: It’s frustrating and difficult to handle their cognitive losses: To meet their needs is demanding, trying and exhausting: They are in our hands and it’s important to see the person: A need for time, resources and a good environment: It is important to have knowledge about dementia and know the patient’s background: To get satisfaction from caring: To be personally affected, to accept and develop. The findings from our literature study demonstrated that working with people with dementia is a complex and demanding job. As a caregiver one has to be resourceful, flexible, empathetic and patient. This study could be used as a source for supporting the need for an individualized care and appropriate environment for persons living with dementia and their caregivers.Validerat; 20101217 (root