Relational Care, Dementia, and Communication Challenges in Long-Term Care: A Meta-Ethnography

Few studies examine care as a relational process in long-term care, and still fewer describe the participation of residents with dementia. In this article, our objective was to understand the development of knowledge in this area by means of a meta-ethnography. Our search and selection process resulted in six eligible articles. Each documents a qualitative study of resident–staff interactions during care activities in a residential care setting, and includes participants with dementia. Tronto’s 4 Phases of Care were used to guide the identification of relational care practices within the articles selected. We identified five translatable concepts across the six studies: (1) doing with versus doing for, (2) staff responsiveness, (3) resident agency, (4) inclusive communication, and (5) time. In our new configuration of relational care, we combine these concepts to delineate an “interactive space” in which the agency of residents and initiative of staff are equally visible.