Family satisfaction with nursing home care for relatives with dementia

Families of residents with dementia from five nursing homes were interviewed to assess if they believed improvements were needed in the care provided to their relatives. Quality of care was assessed in a variety of service and staff areas that factored into two domains of care: (a) environmental and administrative services and (b) direct care. Families who perceived significant improvements were needed in environmental and administrative services had more negative interactions with staff, perceived nurse assistants as being insensitive, and helped relatives with more activities of daily living (ADL). With respect to direct care, families perceived significant improvements were needed when they had more negative interactions with staff and helped their relatives with more ADL. These findings highlight the importance of promoting positive family-staff interactions, providing direct care in a sensitive manner, and exploring the reasons why families get involved in ADL to improve family satisfaction with care.