The radiographers’ attitudes towards persons living with dementia in Malta

Abstract

Purpose The prevalence of persons with dementia (PWD) is increasing in Malta and globally, therefore there is the need to raise awareness of dementia, especially when it comes to the care of PWD at the medical imaging departments (MID). Limited research exists in radiography unlike in other healthcare professionals, therefore the purpose of this study was to investigate the attitudes of radiographers towards PWD when attending for a medical imaging examination. Objectives The objectives of the study were to gather data from radiographers working at a public hospital, at primary health clinics and long-term care facility in Malta. The radiographers’ attitudes towards PWD were investigated and this research assessed whether radiographers’ attitudes are dependent on radiographers’ demographics, such as years of work experience, age, and gender. Another objective was to identify the needs of radiographers to optimise imaging and care for PWD. Methodology For this research a prospective, non-experimental, cross-sectional, and quantitative research design was adopted. 56 questionnaires were collected over a period of three weeks, from a population of 180 radiographers. The data collection tool used for this study adapted some questions from the ‘Strain in Dementia Care scale’ and most of the questions were self-designed. Results The results of the study showed that, both males and females exhibit a relatively neutral outlook in terms of their attitudes towards PWD. The study found that radiographers generally hold a neutral attitude when imaging PWD, that is they had no extremely negative or positive attitudes towards PWD. No significant differences in attitudes across different age groups and different years of experience were noted. Most radiographers encountered difficulties when imaging PWD, with specific challenges reported by radiographers in the age groups of 26-30 years and 31-40 years, as well as those with 11-15 years and 16-20 years of experience. The responses provided by radiographers highlighted several key themes for supporting them in imaging PWD such as immobilisation devices and inclusion of carers or relatives in the imaging room. Findings show the importance of additional dementia training for radiographers, with a preference for Continuing Professional Development (CPD) talks to enhance their skills in imaging PWD. Conclusion This research study concludes that although neutral attitudes were reported towards PWD, multiple challenges were reported by radiographers and these challenges may be addressed by having more training regarding dementia for radiographers. A recommendation to improve radiographers’ practice at the MID is to follow The Society and College of Radiographers Clinical Practice Guidelines for Caring for PWD.