Abstract
This study examined the daily challenges limiting the lives of people with dementia who live alone at home. We conducted semi-structured interviews in February and March of 2019 with nine long-term care managers experienced in caring for people with dementia living alone at least once or within one year. We qualitative and descriptively analyzed 11 case studies. We interpreted the daily challenges of people with dementia as a crisis that threatened safety, declining self-management abilities, problems in daily life activities, vulnerable family relationships, and vulnerable relationships with friends and neighbors. The main challenge these people faced were the decline in their cognitive functions. In addition, vulnerable relationships with others, including family and neighbors, affected their independent home life. These results suggest the need to conduct qualitative research and develop indicators for understanding the obstacles facing people with dementia living alone.
