2021 Volume 25 Issue 2 Pages 80-88
This study aimed to explore the experience of hospitalization from the perspective of people with dementia. We used the databases Ichushi-Web, CiNii and CINAHL to search for articles from 2004 to August 2019 using the keywords “dementia”, “hospitalize”, “experience”, and their associated MeSH terms. Only primary qualitative studies were included. Data analysis was conducted using the qualitative inductive method.
We selected two studies in Japanese and ten studies in English. Seven categories emerged from analysis to describe the experiences of hospitalization from the perspective of people with dementia. These categories were [Feeling comfortable or afraid of nurses’ responses], [Feeling anxious about unfamiliar situations surrounding the patients], [Being deprived of freedom and dignity], [Choosing their own social relationships], [Feeling unfulfilled and isolated from their daily life], [Actively seeking support for condition and/or care], [Relying on their relatives for comfort].
These findings can help nurses understand the reasons behind the behaviors of people with dementia in hospitals.
