Nurses’ Dementia Care Practices at Long-Term Care Health Facilities Following the Perspective of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health

Abstract

This study aimed to elucidate nurses’ dementia care practices at long-term care health facilities by following the perspective of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF) and to obtain suggestions for improving the role nurses play in healthcare. A survey was administered to 5 nurses each from 255 facilities in 4 prefectures in the Tokai region. The responses of 339 nurses (31.3%) were analyzed using covariance structure analysis. It was revealed that care practices that follow the perspective of the ICF comprised two factors: “making use of a comprehensive assessment of the minds and bodies” and “preparation of the human and physical environment to increase calmness in the daily lives.” The ability to practice care and to assess the minds and bodies of the elderly with dementia improved depending on the number of years of experience nurses had with dementia care. Regarding nurses’ fidelity indices for the model, the goodness of fit index (GFI) was 0.884, the adjusted goodness of fit index (AGFI) was 0.840, the comparative fit index (CFI) was 0.909, and the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) was 0.086; GFI ≧ AGFI. Although the assessment ability could be improved upon at any nursing site, the practice of preparing the human and physical environment differed according to the location of medical treatment. Therefore, planned training and education were suggested as requirements for nurses at nursing facilities.