Research based theatre in dementia knowledge transfer: views from the front line

Abstract

Access to this document was granted through an Emerald subscription provided by emerald-srm:368933 [] For AuthorsIf you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -Formal ties between the theatre and research dissemination have only recently developed and its general efficacy is largely unknown. Here the purpose of this paper is to redress this neglect by examining the effectiveness of a research-based theatrical event in promoting dementia knowledge transfer with a group of front line care workers. The event ran over eight days and consisted of an original theatrical production followed by a chaired audience discussion and workshops. Design/methodology/approach -Questionnaires which had been developed specifically for this evaluation were completed by 863 front line workers on the day of the event, eliciting their profiles and immediate reactions. Three months after the event, 30 completed a follow-up questionnaire and eight were interviewed. Findings -Attendance was well received with high degrees of both cognitive and emotional engagement being expressed in the initial questionnaire. The follow-up evaluation suggested that these positive reactions were sustained over time. However, many taking part in this follow-up thought that their practice had not changed as a result of event attendance. This apparent discrepancy between knowledge transfer and utilisation appeared to be partly the result of the influence of contextual factors in impeding this utilisation within work settings. Originality/value -Evidence is provided on the positive impact of theatre on dementia carers' working lives. This is sufficient to warrant further applications of this method, provided there is careful attention to embedding the messages in the workplace context and evaluating their efficacy.

Exploring self-experience practices in dementia care: A scoping review

“…This type of intervention involves combining at least two self-experience practices to improve outcomes by combining the practices and/or providing a more comprehensive account of dementia. Four reports each described four different intervention programmes, all of which combined passive and interactive measures [ 43 , 59 , 65 , 83 ]. The passive components included films or short case vignettes [ 43 , 65 , 83 ], with one intervention programme incorporating a theatrical production [ 59 ].…”

“…Four reports each described four different intervention programmes, all of which combined passive and interactive measures [ 43 , 59 , 65 , 83 ]. The passive components included films or short case vignettes [ 43 , 65 , 83 ], with one intervention programme incorporating a theatrical production [ 59 ]. The interactive practices, which followed the passive practices in all cases, involved group exercises such as physical simulations [ 59 , 65 , 83 ] and/or role-plays [ 43 , 59 , 65 ].…”

Planning of knowledge dissemination in health and social sciences through research-based theatre under the Covid-19 pandemic

“…In the literature, I found examples of successful theatrical dissemination from previous research. Argyle and Schneider (2016), who disseminated knowledge about dementia, reported that a performance like this was well received by attendees, who demonstrated high degrees of cognitive and emotional engagement, and that these positive reactions were sustained over time among the audience. Similarly, results from Gjengedal et al's (2018) project, which yielded insights into what it is like living close to persons with dementia (also using theatrical production), also provide evidence on the positive impact of theatre.…”

“…It is apparent that theatrical performances for dissemination of results from health and social sciences have a wide spectrum. Evidence is found in different clinical specialties, in particular: neurodegenerative diseases (Argyle & Schneider, 2016;Gjengedal et al, 2018), cancer (Gray et al, 2003), contagious diseases (Bosompra, 2007), and (traumat-ic) injuries (Colantonio et al, 2008). Furthermore, patients' stories of receiving health care (Rosenbaum et al, 2005) can also be communicated through this medium.…”

Student experiences of taught part-time study on a postgraduate dementia studies programme: findings from an electronic questionnaire survey

“…Indeed, taking hospitals as example, there is evidence that dementia training based on the values of person centred care (Brooker and Latham, 2016) can have a positive impact on factors such as levels of confidence and dementia related knowledge of staff (Elvish et al (2016) and can positively impact on staff attitudes and a "sense of hope" (Surr et al, 2016). Similarly, Argyle and Schneider (2016) found evidence of "knowledge transfer" following an innovative theatre-based learning event, however the authors did not find evidence of this translating into changes to practice and highlighted the problem of the "implementation-gap" and posit that there are contextual barriers and facilitators to the utilisation of learning. This would accord with the findings of a systematic review by Livingston et al (2014) which found that person centred training for care home staff was only effective in reducing levels of agitation in residents when combined with ongoing "ongoing practical and theoretical advice in implementation, rather than initial training only " (p20, 2014).…”