Understanding dementia in ethnically diverse groups: a qualitative study from Norway.

As the number of older immigrants in Europe rises, dementia within minority ethnic populations warrants attention as a significant public health problem. Equitable health and care services constitute a prioritised health policy aim on both supranational and national levels in Europe and is formulate...

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Published in:Ageing & Society Vol. 40; no. 10; pp. 2191 - 2215
Main Authors: Sagbakken, Mette, Spilker, Ragnhild Storstein, Ingebretsen, Reidun
Format: Article
Published: Cambridge University Press Oct2020
Subjects:
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
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      dt: Oct2020
      vid: 40
      iid: 10
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      pub: Cambridge University Press
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        10.1017/S0144686X19000576
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      tig:
        atl: Understanding dementia in ethnically diverse groups: a qualitative study from Norway.
      aug:
        au:
          Sagbakken, Mette
          Spilker, Ragnhild Storstein
          Ingebretsen, Reidun
        affil:
          Department of Nursing and Health Promotion, Faculty of Health Sciences, OsloMet – Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway
          Unit for Migration and Health, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway
          Norwegian Social Research (NOVA), OsloMet – Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway
      su:
        Ethnic groups
        Focus groups
        Immigrants
        Interviewing
        Social isolation
        Social stigma
        Qualitative research
        Patients' attitudes
        Cognition disorders in old age
        Dementia
        Dementia patients
        Mathematical models
        Theory
      sug:
        subj:
          Ethnic groups
          Focus groups
          Immigrants
          Interviewing
          Social isolation
          Social stigma
          Qualitative research
          Patients' attitudes
          Cognition disorders in old age
          Dementia
          Dementia patients
          Mathematical models
          Theory
      keyword:
        cognitive impairment
        dementia
        diversity
        management
        minority ethnic groups
        perceptions
        cognitive impairment
        dementia
        diversity
        management
        minority ethnic groups
        perceptions
      ab: As the number of older immigrants in Europe rises, dementia within minority ethnic populations warrants attention as a significant public health problem. Equitable health and care services constitute a prioritised health policy aim on both supranational and national levels in Europe and is formulated in the Norwegian health legislation. Through interviews and focus groups with older immigrants, relatives of immigrants with dementia and health personnel, we explored the perceptions of dementia among ethnically diverse groups in Norway. The findings show that many interpret symptoms such as memory loss and disorientation as a natural part of ageing. Others consider dementia symptoms to have a psycho-social origin, deriving from social isolation. Some describe symptoms as an expression of a potentially transient sign of madness, while others point to destiny and God's will, representing basic and unalterable causes. However, another pattern of perception includes viewing dementia as a potentially transient physical illness, including a belief in a medical cure. By investigating how people with dementia and their families understand and manage the condition, one may facilitate access to relevant and adapted information. Furthermore, by exploring how people relate to their illness, health personnel may challenge explanatory models that create unrealistic expectations of cure, as well as models that, due to stigma or normalisation of symptoms, prevent the use of public care.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Article
      src: R
    language: English
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