(In)visible materialities in the context of dementia care

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Sociology of Health and Illness
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Material objects and environments significantly influence healthcare interactions.
• Everyday routines in healthcare settings can be transformed into opportunities for care through attention to materialities.
• Understanding how healthcare professionals perceive materialities is crucial for optimizing care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore how certified nursing assistants in a dementia unit conceptualize materialities.
• To identify different understandings of materialities within dementia care settings.
• To analyze the implications of these understandings for resident care and organizational practices.

Main Methods:

• Phenomenographic analysis of 11 individual interviews with certified nursing assistants.
• Utilized abstracted illustrations of everyday materialities to stimulate reflection.
• Focused on the lived experiences and perceptions of nursing assistants regarding material objects and their role in care.

Main Results:

• Identified three categories of understanding materialities: 'tools for care,' 'a set of principles for care,' and 'caring relationships.'
• Organizational structures visibly reinforced the 'tools for care' perspective.
• Understanding materialities as integral to 'caring relationships' was informal and less visible within the organization.

Conclusions:

• The way materialities are understood impacts the quality of care provided to residents in dementia units.
• Enhancing care practices requires nursing assistants to fluidly shift between different conceptualizations of materialities.
• Professional care organization, structure, and materialization significantly influence the development and application of this essential competence.