Dementia 4: promoting quality of life, handling risk and managing behaviour

How a person-centred approach to care can help manage risks associated with dementia

Abstract

One of healthcare’s many functions is to promote safety. Health professionals are bound by codes of practice that reinforce the promotion of safety through risk-reduction strategies. Ineffective risk management can play a part in creating risk-averse cultures, especially in respect of dementia care in the context of the behavioural and psychological symptoms of this condition. This fourth article in a series on dementia explores using a person-centred approach to help identify and manage risks associated with dementia, including the challenges faced by nurses.

Citation: Brown P, Harrison Dening K (2023) Dementia 4: promoting quality of life, handling risk and managing behaviour. Nursing Times [online]; 119: 6.

Authors: Pat Brown is an Admiral Nurse, Dementia UK; Karen Harrison Dening is head of research and publications, Dementia UK, and honorary professor of dementia nursing, De Montfort University, Leicester.