Person-centered dementia care during COVID-19: a qualitative case study of impact on and collaborations between caregivers

BackgroundLittle is known about the actual impact of COVID-19 on caregivers of older people with dementia and resultant collaborations among them to provide continued person-centered care while undertaking infection control measures. In this study, we explored the impact of providing dementia care during COVID-19 on caregivers involved in dementia care.MethodsThis is an exploratory qualitative case study. The participants were family members living with older people with dementia, care managers, and the medical and long-term care facility staff. Data were collected from 46 caregivers via face-to-face and semi-structured interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis.ResultsThe interviews identified 22 themes related to the impact of COVID-19 on different positions of the caregivers involved in dementia care and their collaboration, and we categorized them into six categories. The core themes were “re-acknowledgement of care priorities” and “rebuilding of relationships.” When caregivers’ perceptions were aligned in the decision-making processes regarding care priorities, “reaffirmation of trust” and “strengthening of intimate relationships” emerged as positive changes in their relationships. Furthermore, the differences in the ability of each caregiver to access and select correct and appropriate information about COVID-19, and the extent of infection spread in the region were related to “anxiety during COVID-19 pandemic” and caused a “gap in perception” regarding infection control.ConclusionsThe present study clarified that the process of aligning the perceptions of caregivers to the objectives and priorities of care for older people with dementia during COVID-19 pandemic strengthened the relationships among caregivers. The findings of this study are useful for caregivers involved in person-centered dementia care

A real-time feedback system stabilises the regulation of worker reproduction under various colony sizes.

Social insects demonstrate adaptive behaviour for a given colony size. Remarkably, most species do this even without visual information in a dark environment. However, how they achieve this is yet unknown. Based on individual trait expression, an agent-based simulation was used to identify an explicit mechanism for understanding colony size dependent behaviour. Through repeated physical contact between the queen and individual workers, individual colony members monitor the physiological states of others, reflecting such contact information in their physiology and behaviour. Feedback between the sensing of physiological states and the corresponding behaviour patterns leads to self-organisation with colonies shifting according to their size. We showed (1) the queen can exhibit adaptive behaviour patterns for the increase in colony size while density per space remains unchanged, and (2) such physical constraints can underlie the adaptive switching of colony stages from successful patrol behaviour to unsuccessful patrol behaviour, which leads to constant ovary development (production of reproductive castes). The feedback loops embedded in the queen between the perception of internal states of the workers and behavioural patterns can explain the adaptive behaviour as a function of colony size

Person-centered dementia care during COVID-19: a qualitative case study of impact on and collaborations between caregivers

BACKGROUND: Little is known about the actual impact of COVID-19 on caregivers of older people with dementia and resultant collaborations among them to provide continued person-centered care while undertaking infection control measures. In this study, we explored the impact of providing dementia care during COVID-19 on caregivers involved in dementia care. METHODS: This is an exploratory qualitative case study. The participants were family members living with older people with dementia, care managers, and the medical and long-term care facility staff. Data were collected from 46 caregivers via face-to-face and semi-structured interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: The interviews identified 22 themes related to the impact of COVID-19 on different positions of the caregivers involved in dementia care and their collaboration, and we categorized them into six categories. The core themes were “re-acknowledgement of care priorities” and “rebuilding of relationships.” When caregivers’ perceptions were aligned in the decision-making processes regarding care priorities, “reaffirmation of trust” and “strengthening of intimate relationships” emerged as positive changes in their relationships. Furthermore, the differences in the ability of each caregiver to access and select correct and appropriate information about COVID-19, and the extent of infection spread in the region were related to “anxiety during COVID-19 pandemic” and caused a “gap in perception” regarding infection control. CONCLUSIONS: The present study clarified that the process of aligning the perceptions of caregivers to the objectives and priorities of care for older people with dementia during COVID-19 pandemic strengthened the relationships among caregivers. The findings of this study are useful for caregivers involved in person-centered dementia care

Parotid Oncocytoma as a Manifestation of Birt-Hogg-Dubé Syndrome

Birt-Hogg-Dubé syndrome (BHD) is a rare autosomal dominant disease characterized by skin fibrofolliculomas, pulmonary cysts, spontaneous pneumothoraces, and renal cancers. Oncocytomas are benign epithelial tumors that are also rare. Recently, there have been a few case reports of BHD with a parotid oncocytoma that appears to have a BHD phenotype. Here we document the eighth known case and describe the magnetic resonance imaging features of the parotid oncocytoma, which mimicked Warthin’s tumor. Radiologists should be aware of the association between these rare disorders