Measuring Dementia Outcomes

The Healthy Ageing team at Health Innovation Network (HIN) have been working with Innovations in Dementia to test an innovative feedback tool based on the dementia i-statements to see if this is a useful way to demonstrate how dementia services contribute towards the outcomes that matter to the person with dementia.

The i-statements were produced via a partnership with leading organisations signed up to the National Dementia Declaration, people with dementia and their family carers and described seven outcomes (statements) they would like to see in their lives. These statements indicate what a good experience of living with dementia should look like ranging from support services, health services and living well in the community.

The 7 i-statements are set out below:

1. I have personal choice and control or influence over decisions about me.
2. I know that services are designed around me and my needs.
3. I have support that helps me live my life.
4. I have the knowledge and know-how to get what I need.
5. I live in an enabling and supportive environment where I feel valued and understood.
6. I have a sense of belonging and of being a valued part of family, community and civic life.
7. I know there is research going on which delivers a better life for me now and hope for the future.

HIN has converted the i-statements into user-friendly questions to be used by services to seek feedback on how well the services are meeting the needs of people with dementia. We have been testing these questions on people with dementia to find out whether they are easy to use and understand. We have produced versions for community group settings, care homes, hospital wards and post-diagnostic support services.

Service providers have reported that the questions produce useful information about their services to inform service improvements and commissioners have informed us that the questions could enable more dementia services to adopt an outcomes based commissioning model.

A report detailing the final sets of dementia friendly questions as well as a set of recommendations about how to use these questions has been published here. In the meantime if you would like more information on this project please contact Polly Sinclair, Project Manager at Health Innovation Network on polly.sinclair@nhs.net.

Measuring Dementia Outcomes report