Enriching opportunities for people living with dementia in nursing homes: An evaluation of a multi-level activity-based model of care

This paper reports on the evaluation of the Enriched Opportunities Programme in improving well-being, diversity of activity, health, and staff practice in nursing home care for people with dementia. Participants were 127 residents with a diagnosis of dementia or enduring mental health problems in three specialist nursing homes in the UK. A repeated measures within-subjects design was employed, collecting quantitative and qualitative data at three points over a twelve-month period in each facility with follow-up 7 to 14 months later. Two-way ANOVAs revealed a statistically significant increase in levels of observed well-being and in diversity of activity following the intervention. There was a statistically significant increase in the number of positive staff interventions but no change in the number of negative staff interventions overall. There was a significant reduction in levels of depression. No significant changes in anxiety, health status, hospitalisations, or psychotropic medication usage were observed. The Enriched Opportunities Programme demonstrated a positive impact: on the lives of people with dementia in nursing homes already offering a relatively good standard of care, in a short period of time. The refined programme requires further evaluation to establish its portability.