A systematic review of the impact of person-centred care interventions on the behaviour of staff working in dementia care

Aim To examine the content, focus, and effectiveness of person-centred care (PCC) interventions aimed at increasing staff PCC behaviour in health and social care settings for people with dementia. Design Systematic search and narrative synthesis of quantitative data. Data sources PsychINFO, Medline, EMBASE, Web of knowledge, CINAHL, ASSIA, and BNI were searched from inception to 5 November 2016. Review methods All records retrieved were screened using predetermined eligibility criteria. Quality assessment was performed with the Effective Public Health Practice Project tool (EPHPP). Results A total of 4,367 records were screened and 33 studies examining the impact of PCC interventions were included. Eight different categories of PCC intervention were identified, with seven of these having at least some evidence to support their effectiveness in increasing staff PCC behaviour. Conclusion The range of interventions and outcome measures identified in this review highlight different ways PCC behaviour can be demonstrated by staff and the range of interventions that can be used to enhance PCC staff behaviour. In future, more rigorously controlled research comparing the relative effectiveness of these interventions will support nursing facilities and staff to choose appropriate interventions to support them in enhancing PCC. Impact This study addressed the health priority of increasing PCC for people with dementia. It found preliminary evidence that seven of the eight intervention types identified are effective at increasing staff PCC behaviour in health and social care settings for people with dementia.