Person-Centred Care from Rhetoric to Reality Exploring the Role of Empowerment

Presenter: Sienna Caspar, PhD, CTRS, Faculty of Health Sciences, Associate Professor, Therapeutic Recreation, University of Lethbridge

Summary: The movement away from task-oriented care toward person-centred care (i.e., care based on residents’ individualized care needs and preferences) is considered by many to be essential to both the quality of care and quality of life of people residing in long-term care (LTC) homes, especially of those who have Alzheimer disease or a related dementia. The consistent provision of person-centred care is widely recognized as the goal of the residential care culture change movement. In this talk, I will share four key findings from over a decade of research that help us to understand the intervention factors and organizational systems that best support the uptake of practice and culture change initiatives.  Evidence for this discussion is derived from both quantitative and qualitative studies conducted across multiple long-term care settings.