Domiciliary and day care services: Why do people with dementia refuse?
OBJECTIVE
To explore the reasons given for refusal of day services, and to examine the relationship between willingness to accept day services and clinical variables.


METHODS
Fifty people with dementia who lived alone and had refused day services were interviewed.


RESULTS
The most common reasons for reluctance to attend day services were the belief that they did not need day services, that they liked being on their own, and the belief that they would not enjoy it. People who persistently refused day services tended to have additional worries about meeting new people, losing their independence and being institutionalised. Fifty-four per cent of people with dementia who lived alone and had refused day services scored six or more on the Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia, suggesting possible presence of major depression.


CONCLUSIONS
In patients with dementia who live alone and refuse day services, their misconceptions about day services and possibility of undiagnosed depression need further exploration.
Durand
Marianne
M
Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust, Chorlton House, 70 Manchester Road, Chorlton Cum Hardy, Manchester, Greater Manchester M21 9UN, UK.
James
Aroushka
A
Ravishankar
Aruna
A
Bamrah
J S
JS
Purandare
Nitin B
NB
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003156:Community Mental Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003704:Dementia / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006299:Health Services for the Aged / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires