Healthcare Professionals’ Attitudes towards Doll Therapy: A Thematic Analysis
Conference Contribution ResearchOnline@JCUAbstract
The number of persons with dementia in Singapore continues to increase, with more of them living in the community setting. Yet research into possible interventions for use in the community setting remains limited. Additionally, research suggests that the attitudes of health professionals could impact on intervention implementation. As doll therapy (which involves behaviours such as holding, talking to, or dressing an anthropomorphic doll) is a potentially effective but underutilised nonpharmacological intervention strategy for management of Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD), the current study sought to explore attitudes of health professionals in Singapore toward the use of doll therapy for dementia in the community. Participants were ten health professionals (five medical professionals either in the field of Geriatric Medicine or in working with the elderly population, and five allied health professionals who have had experience in using doll therapy for dementia). They were each individually interviewed with questions and prompts from a semi-structured interview schedule. A thematic analysis was conducted, and overarching themes (“Perceived usefulness of doll therapy”, “Suitability of doll therapy”, “Others’ perceptions of doll therapy”, “Insufficient understanding leads to misconceptions” and “Resource considerations”) were identified. Results suggest that doll therapy may be a useful and low-risk intervention that circumvents polypharmacy risks, and is acceptable to health professionals in Singapore, as a form of engagement which provides meaning and purpose. Doll therapy seems to be an intervention strategy worth considering, among other interventions targeting BPSD, provided it is used with sensitivity to individuals’ unique needs and circumstances. However, when considering implementation in the community setting, challenges such as cost, insufficient understanding of dementia and doll therapy, as well as the negative perceptions of caregivers and the society still exist. As such, it continues to be under-utilized in the community. To boost implementation feasibility, these challenges need to be overcome.
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CAPE Allied Health Congress 2023
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1
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Singapore
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Centre for Allied Health and Pharmacy Excellence
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Singapore
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