TY - JOUR
AU - D. G. Morgan
AU - J. Kosteniuk
AU - M. Bayly
A1 - 
AB - BACKGROUND: Primary health care has a central role in dementia detection, diagnosis, and management, especially in low-resource rural areas. Care navigation is a strategy to improve integration and access to care, but little is known about how navigators can collaborate with rural primary care teams to support dementia care. In Saskatchewan, Canada, the RaDAR (Rural Dementia Action Research) team partnered with rural primary health care teams to implement interprofessional memory clinics that included an Alzheimer Society First Link Coordinator (FLC) in a navigator role. Study objectives were to examine FLC and clinic team member perspectives of the impact of FLC involvement, and analysis of Alzheimer Society data comparing outcomes associated with three types of navigator-client contacts. METHODS: This study used a mixed-method design. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with FLC (n = 3) and clinic team members (n = 6) involved in five clinics. Data were analyzed using thematic inductive analysis. A longitudinal retrospective analysis was conducted with previously collected Alzheimer Society First Link database records. Memory clinic clients were compared to self- and direct-referred clients in the geographic area of the clinics on time to first contact, duration, and number of contacts. RESULTS: Three key themes were identified in both FLC and team interviews: perceived benefits to patients and families of FLC involvement, benefits to memory clinic team members, and impact of rural location. Whereas other team members assessed the patient, only FLC focused on caregivers, providing emotional and psychological support, connection to services, and symptom management. Face-to-face contact helped FLC establish a relationship with caregivers that facilitated future contacts. Team members were relieved knowing caregiver needs were addressed and learned about dementia subtypes and available services they could recommend to non-clinic clients with dementia. Although challenges of rural location included fewer available services and travel challenges in winter, the FLC role was even more important because it may be the only support available. CONCLUSIONS: FLC and team members identified perceived benefits of an embedded FLC for patients, caregivers, and themselves, many of which were linked to the FLC being in person.
AD - Canadian Centre for Rural and Agricultural Health, University of Saskatchewan, 104 Clinic Place, Box 23, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5E5, Canada. debra.morgan@usask.ca.; Canadian Centre for Rural and Agricultural Health, University of Saskatchewan, 104 Clinic Place, Box 23, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5E5, Canada.; Research Ethics Office, Human Ethics, University of Saskatchewan, 2nd Floor, Thorvaldson Building, 110 Science Place, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5C9, Canada.
AN - 38724975
BT - BMC Health Serv Res
C5 - Education & Workforce; Healthcare Disparities
CP - 1
DA - May 9
DO - 10.1186/s12913-024-11066-0
DP - NLM
ET - 20240509
IS - 1
JF - BMC Health Serv Res
LA - eng
N2 - BACKGROUND: Primary health care has a central role in dementia detection, diagnosis, and management, especially in low-resource rural areas. Care navigation is a strategy to improve integration and access to care, but little is known about how navigators can collaborate with rural primary care teams to support dementia care. In Saskatchewan, Canada, the RaDAR (Rural Dementia Action Research) team partnered with rural primary health care teams to implement interprofessional memory clinics that included an Alzheimer Society First Link Coordinator (FLC) in a navigator role. Study objectives were to examine FLC and clinic team member perspectives of the impact of FLC involvement, and analysis of Alzheimer Society data comparing outcomes associated with three types of navigator-client contacts. METHODS: This study used a mixed-method design. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with FLC (n = 3) and clinic team members (n = 6) involved in five clinics. Data were analyzed using thematic inductive analysis. A longitudinal retrospective analysis was conducted with previously collected Alzheimer Society First Link database records. Memory clinic clients were compared to self- and direct-referred clients in the geographic area of the clinics on time to first contact, duration, and number of contacts. RESULTS: Three key themes were identified in both FLC and team interviews: perceived benefits to patients and families of FLC involvement, benefits to memory clinic team members, and impact of rural location. Whereas other team members assessed the patient, only FLC focused on caregivers, providing emotional and psychological support, connection to services, and symptom management. Face-to-face contact helped FLC establish a relationship with caregivers that facilitated future contacts. Team members were relieved knowing caregiver needs were addressed and learned about dementia subtypes and available services they could recommend to non-clinic clients with dementia. Although challenges of rural location included fewer available services and travel challenges in winter, the FLC role was even more important because it may be the only support available. CONCLUSIONS: FLC and team members identified perceived benefits of an embedded FLC for patients, caregivers, and themselves, many of which were linked to the FLC being in person.
PY - 2024
SN - 1472-6963
SP - 607
ST - Perceptions and outcomes of an embedded Alzheimer Society First Link Coordinator in rural primary health care memory clinics
T1 - Perceptions and outcomes of an embedded Alzheimer Society First Link Coordinator in rural primary health care memory clinics
T2 - BMC Health Serv Res
TI - Perceptions and outcomes of an embedded Alzheimer Society First Link Coordinator in rural primary health care memory clinics
U1 - Education & Workforce; Healthcare Disparities
U3 - 10.1186/s12913-024-11066-0
VL - 24
VO - 1472-6963
Y1 - 2024
ER -