Long stay NHS wards for people with dementia can be a clinical backwater

Professor Mary Marshall

They examined the quality of care received by more than 200 people with dementia, living in 10 private sector and seven NHS care facilities.

Each centre was rated using a recognised method known as dementia care mapping.

The dementia care index rated all seven NHS facilities and five of the private sector facilities as needing radical improvement.

The remaining five private sector facilities were rated as needing much improvement.

No home showed even a fair standard of care.

Over the six hour daytime period of observation, residents spent almost 50% of their time either asleep, socially withdrawn or not actively engaged in any form of basic or constructive activity.

Only 50 minutes (14%) were spent communicating with staff or other residents, and less than 12 minutes (3%) were spent engaged in everyday constructive activities other than watching television.

The researchers say their findings clearly show that current care provision for these vulnerable patients is inadequate and urgent action is required.

The proposed national standards for care in residential and nursing homes for elderly people stress that every effort should be made to help them lead active lives, and socialise with other people.

Bad attitude

Professor Mary Marshall, of the Dementia Services Development Centre at the University of Sterling, said a lack of top-quality NHS facilities was often coupled with a poor attitude among staff.

"Long stay NHS wards for people with dementia can be a clinical backwater.

"They are often in poor quality buildings and are staffed by people who have little motivation for the work.

"Many staff may still believe that people with dementia are unaware of the world and unable to benefit from interaction."

This grim picture was paralleled in nursing homes, she said.

"Staff are often unaware of recent thinking about dementia care. They too often have neither the time nor the energy to provide more than basic physical care."

The research is published in the British Medical Journal.