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Remote primary care consultations for people living with dementia during the COVID-19 pandemic: experiences of people living with dementia and their carers

Tuijt, R; Rait, G; Frost, R; Wilcock, J; Manthorpe, J; Walters, K; (2021) Remote primary care consultations for people living with dementia during the COVID-19 pandemic: experiences of people living with dementia and their carers. British Journal of General Practice 10.3399/BJGP.2020.1094. (In press). Green open access

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Abstract

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 has accelerated remote healthcare provision in primary care, with changes potentially permanent. The implementation of remote provision of healthcare needs to hear from vulnerable populations, such as people living with dementia. AIM: To understand the remote healthcare experiences of patients living with dementia and their family carers during the COVID-19 pandemic. DESIGN AND SETTING: Qualitative interviews with community-based patients living with dementia and their carers during early months (May-August 2020) of the COVID-19 pandemic in England. METHODS: Semi-structured interviews were conducted remotely by telephone or video call with 30 patients living with dementia and 31 carers. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: Three main themes were derived relating to: 1) proactive care at the onset of COVID-19 restrictions, 2) avoidance of healthcare settings and services, and 3) difficulties with remote healthcare encounters. People living with dementia and their carers felt check-up calls were reassuring but limited in scope and content. Some avoided healthcare services, wishing to minimise COVID-19 risk, reduce NHS burden, or encountering technological barriers. Difficulties in remote consultations included lack of prompts to remember problems, dealing with new emerging problems, rescheduling/missed calls, and inclusion of the person with dementia's voice. CONCLUSION: While remote consultations could be effective, pro-active calls could be more structured around needs, and consideration should be given to replace non-verbal prompts to describe problems, particularly for new health concerns. In continuing remote consultations, it is important to facilitate engagement with patients living with dementia and their carers to ensure best practice.

Type: Article
Title: Remote primary care consultations for people living with dementia during the COVID-19 pandemic: experiences of people living with dementia and their carers
Location: England
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.3399/BJGP.2020.1094
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.3399/BJGP.2020.1094
Language: English
Additional information: Copyright © 2021, The Authors. This article is Open Access: CC BY license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Keywords: COVID-19, Caregivers, Dementia, Primary Health Care, Qualitative research, Telemedicine
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Epidemiology and Health
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Epidemiology and Health > Primary Care and Population Health
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10122882
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