title: Help-seeking for dementia: a systematic review of the literature.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Help-seeking (HS) for dementia presents a great challenge, especially because a timely and appropriate HS process might be associated with better outcomes for the person with dementia, their caregivers, and society. A clear understanding of the HS concept and its measurement in the area of dementia might improve the effectiveness of the process.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aims of our systematic review were: (1) to systematically obtain and evaluate the relevant literature on HS and dementia; and (2) to summarize current research findings and draw conclusions for future research and clinical care in this area.
  
  
  METHODS
  A systematic review of the literature on HS and dementia was conducted up till June 2013.
  
  
  RESULTS
  From the 478 retrieved articles, 48 were included in the review. Conceptually, the studies examined professional and nonprofessional sources of help; showed preference for seeking help from close relatives followed by primary health caregivers; and identified inadequate knowledge and stigmatic beliefs as the main barriers to HS. The majority of the studies did not rely on a theoretical framework.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although the body of literature in the area of HS and dementia is growing, several conceptual and methodological limitations still have to be resolved to advance knowledge in the area.
authors.affiliation: *Department of Community Mental Health †Center for Research and Study of Aging, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel ‡Ho Cheung Shuk Yuen Charitable Foundation, Hong Kong §Centre for Gerontological Nursing, School of Nursing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: Perla
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Werner
authors.forename: Dovrat
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Goldstein
authors.forename: Dikla S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Karpas
authors.forename: Liliane
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lai
mesh_terms: D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D042241:Early Diagnosis; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009679:Nuclear Family; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations