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This paper aims to highlight the critical importance of the perspectives of mental health service-users during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This viewpoint is based on a review of recent research and literature and draws on consultations with experts by experience, including the lead author.

The authors argue that expertise-by-experience is critical to policy, service development and research; but there is a risk it will be neglected at a time of rapid and reactive clinical development.

Understanding and responding to the nuances of individual need can only be achieved through coproducing service strategy design, delivery and research with mental health service users. The consultation outlined in this viewpoint gives some indication of the type of valuable insights that can be gained through seeking and listening to the perspectives of experts by experience.

The discussions revealed that experience of managing severe and complex mental health conditions can actually be advantageous when facing a crisis such as COVID-19.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of co-creativity in relation to artistic practice with people with a dementia. The aim of the discussion is to outline how co-creativity offers fresh approaches for engaging artists and people with dementia, can contribute to less restrictive understandings of “creativity” and above all, expand the understanding of people with a dementia as creative, relational and agential.

In order to examine current conceptions of co-creativity and to inform the artistic practice, relevant literature was explored and eight expert interviews were conducted. The interviews were thematically analysed and are included here.

This paper consequently demonstrates that improvisation, structure, leadership and equality are central elements of co-creative processes and outlines how co-creativity can offer fresh insights into the way in which the arts can engage people with a dementia, the relationship between creativity and dementia and the transformative potential of the co-creative arts for those living with a dementia.

The paper discusses some of the difficulties that are inherent a co-creative approach, including power relations and the limitations of inclusivity. Due to ethical restrictions, the paper is limited by not including the perspectives of people living with a dementia.

This paper paves the way for future research into co-creative processes in a variety of different contexts.

A more nuanced understanding of co-creativity with people with dementia could challenge the dominant biomedical and social paradigms that associate “dementia” with irretrievable loss and decline by creating opportunities for creative agency.

This exploration of co-creativity with people with dementia is the first of its kind and contributes to the wider understanding of co-creativity and co-creative practice.

The Age Partnership Group (APG) and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) recently commissioned a number of studies under the general heading: ‘Extending Working Life’, as part of a national guidance campaign. The campaign aims to raise employers' awareness of flexible employment and retirement opportunities prior to the implementation of age legislation towards the end of 2006. In general this legislation will ensure that employers will no longer be able to recruit, train, promote or retire people on the basis of their age. As part of the DWP framework, the Institute of Gerontology at King's College London was asked to examine recurrent misconceptions about pension ages and retirement ages. These take the form of misunderstandings, confusions, and in some instances even fictions that are perpetrated via the media and sometimes by those organisations that hope to clarify matters around pensions. This work was aimed at a professional audience. Therefore the focus of this article is predominantly on practical rather than theoretical issues. However, the policy and practice implications that arise, when the most basic topics associated with pensions and retirement are not properly understood, are profound. These can affect people on the verge of pension age, as well as those who are attempting to plan for retirement and also their employers. Without a clear understanding of the facts about entitlement to a state pension, for instance, individuals and their employers may not pursue the opportunities open to them. In this article, the most salient of these misconceptions are examined and redressed. This was undertaken through an extensive literature review, which examined not only a wide range of media reports (from the press, internet and radio) but also encompassed government documents and academic papers. The Pensions Policy Institute (PPI) in particular gave guidance and advice.

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to debates about the category “dementia”. Dementia is discussed, as it is a social, political and cultural issue, rather than a solely medical phenomenon.

The methodology synthesises perspectives from humanities with the social sciences. Thus a number of cultural texts are analysed critically and set alongside data from two original research projects exploring the use of the arts for people living with a dementia. Central to the research is a close and critical examination of news reports, films, plays and documentaries that represent “dementia”. The extent to which metaphorical language frames ways of talking about dementia formed a key part of this analysis.

Until recently, “dementia” has been primarily defined in biomedical terms. This paper demonstrates that understandings of dementia should be extended to encompass social and cultural contexts.

The research concentrates on the UK context, but there are lessons that can be extrapolated from to other contexts.

This paper explores why it is important to understand “dementia” in terms of cultural context, the reasons we should challenge the language often used to describe people living with a dementia, the ways in which prevailing representations of people living with a dementia can affect perceptions and contribute to stigma.

This paper presents an alternative perspective, that is not biomedical and draws on original research from both the humanities and social sciences investigating the stories that we tell about this complex condition.

Extra care housing has developed from sheltered housing and has increasingly been seen as a popular option by policy‐makers for a number of reasons. These include the inability of conventional sheltered housing to be an adequate solution for a growing population of very old people, the decline in popularity and high costs of residential care and perceived problems with older people staying in mainstream housing. There is, however, no agreed definition of extra care housing, even though a growing number of government grants are becoming available for this type of housing. This is causing confusion for providers and for older people and their families who are not sure exactly what is provided. This lack of clarity means that this form of housing has become an erratic and piecemeal form of provision.

The purpose of this paper is to outline the first stage of an innovative developmental study addressing the educational and emotional needs of dementia care home staff using arts-based materials.

The arts workshop was developed using a mixed methods approach. This included ethnographic observation within a dementia care home, in-depth interviews with senior care home managers, a thematic analysis of focus groups and the development of a comic. At all stages, the multi-disciplinary project team collaborated closely with the care home staff. A comprehensive literature review of the policy, practice and academic background to dementia workforce education provided a contextual framework for the study. Perspectives from the medical humanities informed the project.

Despite the high prevalence of people living with dementia in care homes, there is a lack of appropriate training for the workforce that provides their care. This study found that an arts-based workshop offering an interactive mode of education was an effective way to engage this workforce. The workshop empowered participants to recognise their skills and focus on person-centred care; reflecting current recommendations for dementia care.

The workshop was delivered in a single dementia care home and therefore findings may not be generalisable. In addition, the management did not take a direct part in the delivery of the workshop and therefore their views are not included in this study.

The arts-based approach can offer a means of engaging the dementia care workforce in education linked to their experience of caring.

The paper identifies the gap in relevant education for the dementia care workforce and outlines one possible way of addressing this gap using the arts.