Abstract
Objectives: To evaluate the feasibility of a dance program for people with moderate to severe dementia living in nursing homeswith regards to recruitment and retention, assessment tools, intervention safety, attendance and engagement.
Design: Pilot randomised controlled trial with assessments at weeks 0, 16 and 32.
Setting: A nursing home in Sydney, Australia. Interventions: Experienced dance teachers conducted dance groups (intervention) or music appreciation and socialisation groups (control) for 45 min, three times a week for 16 weeks.
Main outcome measures: Descriptive statistics for recruitment and retention, adverse events and attendance and engagement.
Results: Recruitment was smooth, attrition was17% over 32 weeks. Engagement during the sessions was high, and no serious falls or behavioural incidents occurred. Average attendance was poorer than anticipated for dance groups (67%) in comparison to music groups (89%). A ceiling effect on the Severe Impairment Battery and the logistical challenges of the Clinical Global Impression of Change meant they may not be optimal tools.
Conclusions: It is feasible to conduct a study of group dance for people with moderate to severe dementia in residential care. Choice of attention control condition should be reconsidered.
Design: Pilot randomised controlled trial with assessments at weeks 0, 16 and 32.
Setting: A nursing home in Sydney, Australia. Interventions: Experienced dance teachers conducted dance groups (intervention) or music appreciation and socialisation groups (control) for 45 min, three times a week for 16 weeks.
Main outcome measures: Descriptive statistics for recruitment and retention, adverse events and attendance and engagement.
Results: Recruitment was smooth, attrition was17% over 32 weeks. Engagement during the sessions was high, and no serious falls or behavioural incidents occurred. Average attendance was poorer than anticipated for dance groups (67%) in comparison to music groups (89%). A ceiling effect on the Severe Impairment Battery and the logistical challenges of the Clinical Global Impression of Change meant they may not be optimal tools.
Conclusions: It is feasible to conduct a study of group dance for people with moderate to severe dementia in residential care. Choice of attention control condition should be reconsidered.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 42-44 |
Number of pages | 3 |
Journal | Complementary Therapies in Medicine |
Volume | 29 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1 Dec 2016 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2016 Elsevier Ltd
Keywords
- dance therapy
- dementia