Geriatrics, Gerontology & Elderly Care

Biography

Biography: Caroline Van Dullemen

Abstract

The current study investigates new forms of inter-professional cooperation and the engagement of staff taking care of older people with dementia. The number of dementia patients in the Netherlands is expected to rise to more than half a million in 2040. The healthcare costs for dementia will rise accordingly: from €6.6 billion in 2015 to €15.6 billion in 2040. Dementia is therefore developing into the leading cause of death in the Netherlands and among the most expensive diseases. In the Dutch capital of Amsterdam, the number of people with dementia is expected to increase by 56% between now and 2030. And instead of a steady growth of caretaking personnel, an increasing shortage is trending. The shortage for this year is an estimated 49 thousand persons; the estimated deficit in 2030 is expected to rise to almost 117 thousand caretakers. The largest insufficiencies are expected associate’s degree/vocational training 3 (mbo 3) and nurses level 4 and applied university level. In view of these worrying developments and the relevance of the theme of innovation in dementia care, research is needed into binding and engaging caregivers for people with dementia. This is possible by examining practices in small-scale innovative projects. An example of this is ‘’De Nieuwe Sint Jacob’’ in Amsterdam. From April 1, 2022 onwards, care institute Amstelring has realized 36 new apartments in the eastern part of the city a small-scale form of living for people with dementia. The Nieuwe Sint Jacob works according to the "social approach". This implies that people with dementia are defined as little as possible as a ‘’medical problem’’. The residents are treated less like patients.

This maximizes their sense of being “human” and provides them with agency. This will reduce their insecurity, increase self-confidence, which will also have positive consequences for their social network. In order to implement this new approach, a form of strategic HR was applied. Not only professional caregivers with regular care training were recruited, but also people with other kind of experiences. Teams would be composed of 50 percent of caretakers with a regular professional background and 50 percent of new (novel) personnel (level 2) that has followed a reduced training. A vacancy has been published under the title "happy makers" in which people were addressed to work in: "A team of real hands-on characters who naturally sense what someone needs. And will give loving attention with passion and courage. That is why these competences of the ‘’happy makers’’ are most important: communication skills, collaboration, self-reflection, sense of responsibility and empathy.” More than 80 interested people responded to the vacancy. Finally, a little less than a quarter was offered the job. The position has been renamed 'Personal Supporter' (PO). This research will bring about new knowledge about the cooperation between professional caretakers with different social and educational backgrounds. There have been studies conducted with respect to inter-professional cooperation amongst nurses, but not so much is known about new forms of inter-professional cooperation in dementia care in a more cosmopolitics setting. Also, not much research is conducted about the level in which mixed teams are prepared for their jobs and how they can be stimulated to stay interested and engaged. The urgency of the problem and the academic relevance result in the following research questions:

• What are the experiences of the team members to work with colleagues with different professional backgrounds and length of education? In what way their experiences match their expectations? (Trust, cooperation, accepted as a full team member).

• How is the cooperation between caretakers with different backgrounds taking shape? What are the critical success factors?

• In what way do the new team members feel prepared for by the educational institute and how do they evaluate the coaching on the job? What are points of improvement?

In the study, data are collected via interviews and observations. The theoretical framework is primarily based on Relational Coordination Theory. This theory proposes that shared goals, shared knowledge and mutual respect support a frequent, timely, precise and problem-solving communication. This results in a better coordination of work across boundaries. The level of coordination is measured in 5 dimensions: 1. Cooperation; 2. Tasks & responsibilities; 3. Dealing with failures; 4. Learning organization and 5. Social connectedness. Hypotheses are that the collaboration will be not as smooth as expected, due to on the one side lack of professional communication (no common language) and on the other hand, a strict division of labour based on the different levels of the care takers (no joint feeling of responsibilities as a team). Coaching on the job is addressing these issues and is feeding the results back to the educational institute in order to improve the schooling of the team as a whole.