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Experiences of a novel interactive system for group reminiscence therapy in the Irish care home setting

O'Rourke, Julia (2006) Experiences of a novel interactive system for group reminiscence therapy in the Irish care home setting. Master of Science thesis, Dublin City University.

Abstract
Background: Using technology to procure and deliver content for reminiscence therapy is not new in care home activities and evidence has shown that technology has the ability to improve reminiscence, making it less arduous for the carer and potentially more beneficial for the person with dementia. There is limited literature on the practical recommendations of how to use technology in reminiscence and how this impacts on the reminiscence process. REMPAD is an interactive, multimedia system that contains a wide range of stimuli to prompt reminiscence amongst facilitators and groups of people with dementia. Method: This qualitative case study adopts a constructivism philosophy and an exploratory and descriptive approach to investigating the existing presence of reminiscence and technology in care home activities for people with dementia. The benefits and challenges of using technology in reminiscence are explored in the Irish care home context. The process and experience of introducing REMPAD to seven activity coordinators is discussed. Findings: There exists jeopardy in the application of reminiscence activities and technology-assisted reminiscence in care homes. Activity coordinator definitions and understandings of reminiscence therapy and its objectives are varied. The value placed on reminiscence and its benefits is varied. Perceived benefits of the application of technology-based reminiscence for facilitators include; increasing access to the activity of reminiscence, reducing session preparation time, increasing availability of reminiscence materials, increased enjoyment in viewing reminiscence materials, increased opportunities for social interactions with persons with dementia. Challenges include the technical specification required for setup, user skill required for operation, dependency on variables to engage in reminiscence care home organisational readiness for the integration of technology into care home therapies. In some cases, technology was observed to place a dependency on having access to the resource in order to be able to engage in the process of reminiscence. Conclusion: This thesis challenges the notion that technology-assisted reminiscence is suitable for all care homes undertaking reminiscence with individuals with dementia. The study yield rich insight into existing application and availability of reminiscence and technology resources in care homes. Insights on benefits and challenges of using ICT during RT highlight the need for clear recommendations on technology use in reminiscence for care home organisations, reminiscence facilitators and reminiscence participants.
Metadata
Item Type:Thesis (Master of Science)
Date of Award:16 November 2006
Refereed:No
Supervisor(s):Irving, Kate and Philbin, Mark
Subjects:Medical Sciences > Nursing
Medical Sciences > Geriatric nursing
DCU Faculties and Centres:UNSPECIFIED
Use License:This item is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. View License
ID Code:21367
Deposited On:23 Nov 2016 16:34 by Kate Irving (lupton) . Last Modified 23 Oct 2019 14:47
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