On 28 January, The Alzheimer Society of Ireland (ASI) published a new policy position paper “Dementia and Loneliness”. ASI commissioned researchers from University College Cork to carry out the research, with the aim of informing current understandings in this area. The paper reflects the experiences of loneliness for people living with dementia; how loneliness can, in part, be attributed to a lack of supports and services; and the public awareness and understanding of dementia.
In addition to a literature review, interviews were conducted with individuals over the age of 55, living at home, with a dementia diagnosis, to understand whether people living with dementia felt lonely as their lives progressed and their conditions worsened.
The report indicates that loneliness is not necessarily caused by being alone, but by being without some definite needed relationship or set of relationships or indeed the availability of local supports and services. The study particularly found that access to home-care support and public nurses enabled families to manage living life with dementia, but the difficulties of securing these supports were a source of anxiety, frustration, and loneliness.
Key recommendations from the report to alleviate loneliness for people with dementia include:
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People living with dementia should be enabled to continue to engage in the meaningful social activities they enjoyed doing before their dementia diagnosis, should they wish to do so. Facilitation of this continued engagement in social activities may require support from family, formal caregivers and wider society.
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Accessible and simple information to help understand dementia should be provided to the general public, service providers, health and social care professionals, and relevant volunteer/community groups. Communication tips and skills relevant to dementia need to be made available to enhance opportunities for effective engagement.
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People living with dementia and their caregivers should be given an opportunity to participate in local dementia support groups. For this, these groups need to exist, and people need to be facilitated to attend and important that continued attempts are made to address the stigma associated with dementia, at a local and national level.
ASI Policy & Research Manager Dr Bernadette Rock said:
“Dementia-supportive communities or other social resources are necessary to ensure people with dementia maintain social networks that foster connections and encourage people to partake in meaningful activities that preserve their sense of self-worth. The data in this study suggests that the maintenance of social connection to the wider community fosters a sense of self-worth and self-management, which in turn mitigates feelings of loneliness. It is so important for people with dementia to feel connected to their local community.”
The full report can be read here: https://bit.ly/2CQ1N4k
The Press Release can be read here: https://bit.ly/2RqnuNH
