__smbhome.uscs.susx.ac.uk_tjk30_Documents_250719 Final revised rurality paper not blinded.pdf (304.66 kB)
Experiences of rural life among community-dwelling older men with dementia and their implications for social inclusion
journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-09, 19:25 authored by Ben HicksBen Hicks, Anthea Innes, Samuel R NymanCurrent international dementia care policies focus on creating ‘dementia-friendly’ communities that aim to support the social inclusion of people with dementia. Although it is known that the geo-socio-cultural rural environment can impact on the experiences of people living with dementia, this can be overlooked when exploring and implementing social inclusion policies. This paper addresses an important gap in the literature by exploring the perceptions of daily life for older men (65+ years) living with dementia in three rural areas of England. Open interviews were conducted with 17 rural-dwelling older men with dementia and the data elicited were analysed thematically to construct two higher order themes. The first focussed on ‘Cracking on with life in a rural idyll’ and highlighted the benefits of rural living including the pleasant, natural environment, supportive informal networks and some accessible formal dementia support. The second presented ‘A challenge to the idyll’ and outlined difficulties the men faced including a lack of dementia awareness amongst their family and the wider rural community as well as the physical and internal motivational barriers associated with the rural landscape and their dementia. The findings were interpreted through a lens of social inclusion and demonstrated how the geo-socio-cultural rural environment both enabled and inhibited facets of the men’s experiences of life in their communities. Based on these findings, the paper offers recommendations for practitioners, researchers and policy makers wishing to promote social inclusion in rural-dwelling older men living with dementia.
History
Publication status
- Published
File Version
- Accepted version
Journal
DementiaISSN
1471-3012Publisher
SAGE PublicationsExternal DOI
Page range
1-20Department affiliated with
- BSMS Neuroscience Publications
Research groups affiliated with
- Dementia Research Group Publications
Full text available
- Yes
Peer reviewed?
- Yes
Legacy Posted Date
2019-10-28First Open Access (FOA) Date
2019-10-28First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date
2019-10-21Usage metrics
Categories
No categories selectedLicence
Exports
RefWorks
BibTeX
Ref. manager
Endnote
DataCite
NLM
DC