There exists a culture in long-term care that provides few opportunities for those directly involved in care to participate in decision-making. Current approaches to care often exclude persons with dementia from decision-making, fuelled by misunderstanding and stigma that view persons with dementia as incapable of communicating their experiences, and thus unable to make meaningful contributions to their own lives and the lives of others. These misconceptions contribute to the silencing and marginalisation of those with dementia and limit possibilities in dementia care.
The Partnerships in Dementia Care (PiDC) Alliance, co-led by Sherry Dupuis, Director, Kenneth G. Murray Alzheimer Research and Education Program – MAREP brings together researchers from five universities and 50 partners at the regional, provincial, and national levels representing all key stakeholder groups in dementia care. Their goal is to facilitate sustainable culture change in long-term care that reflects a relationship-centred/partnership approach to care and support for persons living with Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia (ADRD).
Read the research story Changing the culture in long-term care.