Formal caregivers’ attitudes towards older people with dementia

Abstract

Staff positive attitudes towards people with dementia are seen as a facilitator to personalised care and job satisfaction. This study aimed to analyse formal caregivers’ attitudes towards older people with dementia and to explore the relationship between socio-demographics data and caregivers’ attitudes. A cross-sectional study with 180 formal caregivers who provided direct care to people with dementia was conducted. Socio-demographics data were collected using a structured questionnaire based on ICF- checklist. The Portuguese version of Dementia Attitudes Scale (DAS) was used to assess the caregivers’ attitudes towards dementia. Descriptive statistics, parametric and non-parametric tests were performed for data analysis. Formal caregivers tend to present positive attitudes towards dementia. Caregivers who had undertaken specific training on dementia and self-reported better perception of physical and mental health had more positives attitudes.