Effectiveness of a recovery-orientated psychiatric intervention package on the wellbeing of people with early dementia: a preliminary randomised controlled trial

• Published in: International journal of geriatric psychiatry 2013-06, Vol.28 (6), p.589-596
• Main Authors: Jha, Arun, Jan, Farida, Gale, Tim, Newman, Charmaine
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aged; Biological and medical sciences; Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale; Caregivers; Clinical trials; Cognition & reasoning; Cognitive Dysfunction - therapy; Counseling - methods; Degenerative and inherited degenerative diseases of the nervous system. Leukodystrophies. Prion diseases; Delivery of Health Care, Integrated - methods; Dementia; Dementia - diagnosis; Dementia - psychology; Dementia - therapy; disclosing diagnosis; early dementia; Female; General aspects; Geriatric psychiatry; Geriatric psychology; Geriatrics; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Mental health care; Middle Aged; mild cognitive impairment (MCI); Neurology; psychiatric assessment; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Quality of Life; RCT; recovery approach; Regression Analysis; wellbeing
• ISSN: 0885-6230; 1099-1166
• DOI: 10.1002/gps.3863

Objective To investigate whether recovery‐orientated psychiatric assessment and therapeutic intervention enhances the wellbeing of people with dementia and their family carers. Methods In a preliminary randomised controlled trial, 48 people with early dementia were recruited. Of 34 who completed the trial, 17 were in the recovery and 17 in the treatment as usual group. Recovery participants received a recovery‐focused pre‐diagnostic wellbeing assessment and counselling, diagnostic consultation with written feedback and post‐diagnostic support over a period of 6 months using the WHO Wellbeing Index as the primary measure, and Mini Mental State Examination, Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia, EUROQOL and Zarit Burden Interview as secondary outcome measures. Results People in the recovery group showed a significant improvement in the WHO Wellbeing Index (18.3 for recovery vs 9.46 for treatment as usual; t = −2.28, p = 0.03), with trends of improvement in other outcome measures. Conclusions This trial shows that a recovery‐focused diagnostic consultation and post‐diagnostic support enhance the wellbeing of people with mild cognitive impairment and early dementia. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.