Abstract
Background and aim: Because of the policy of ‘ageing in place’ and a decreased number of beds at residential settings, more persons with dementia are staying in their ordinary homes with assistance from home care services. However, previous studies reveal more unmet needs and a lower quality of life in this group than in other groups. Because few qualitative studies are done where persons with dementia have the opportunity to tell their own stories and describe what they find important, this study aimed to interview persons with dementia and describe their views of important aspects when receiving home care service.
Methods: The study has a qualitative approach and 14 persons with dementia participated in interviews. The interviews were analysed using qualitative content analysis.
Results: The results revealed one overarching theme: The importance of being supported as a unique and capable human, in that the persons with dementia described that despite their dementia diagnoses it was important to be seen as a person with capabilities although in need of support. The theme was built up by three subthemes: Being seen as a person, being involved and informed; and being part of a relationship.
Conclusions: Our study showed that persons with dementia are able to express, formulate and reflect on their needs and preferences about their daily care and what is important to them when receiving home care service. Therefore, their points of view should be considered when planning, providing and examining care, and they need to be involved in decision making about their care.