Systematic review of planned care transitions for persons with dementia

Abstract

A systematic review was conducted to identify, categorize and summarize available research on planned care transitions or relocations for persons with dementia (PWD) in order to help guide best practice. Articles were identified by keyword searches of electronic databases, and a soft search of references of relevant articles. The review found that planned care transitions in PWD are associated with an increase in undesirable outcomes, particularly immediately post-transition, and that caregivers are often underutilized in care planning and underprepared for care transitions. It is recommended that transitional care interventions for PWD make explicit efforts to enhance caregiver involvement, provide social and pragmatic support for PWD and their caregivers and offer assistance in managing behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia.

Keywords: BPSD; agitation; dementia; discharge; patient transfer; relocation; transitional care.