The patients’ and caregivers’ perspective: In-hospital navigation aids for people with dementia- a qualitative study with a value sensitive design approach

Abstract

ABSTRACT People with dementia (PwD) have serious difficulties orienting themselves in a hospital environment. In this qualitative study, we asked PwD and their informal caregivers about requirements for assistive technology when navigating in in-patient care settings. We aimed to provide user-centered recommendations for the development of an in-hospital navigation aid following a value sensitive design approach. We conducted semi-structured interviews with two stakeholder groups as potential future users of in-hospital navigation aids: PwD (n = 10, agemean = 83.9 years, MMSEmean = 21.2) and informal caregivers (n = 10, agemean = 75.9 years). The interviews were evaluated using qualitative content analysis in a multistage process involving six members of a self-help group for relatives of PwD as co-researchers. Independence and relief/respite were the most important values regarding assistive technology for PwD. Informal caregivers attributed greatest importance to safety and relief/respite. The underlying values of these stakeholder groups contribute to recommendations for designing new assistive technologies for patient-centered in-patient care: Assistive technology needs to overcome age- and disease-related limitations, and the resulting individual risks, while providing subsidiary assistance to maintain the desired independence of PwD for as long as possible.