Reminiscence promotes the acceptance of oneself and others, a sense of meaning, and the integration of the present and the past. The currently accepted classification contains eight reminiscence functions grouped in three broader functions: self-positive functions (identity, problem-solving, and death preparation); self-negative functions (bitterness revival, boredom reduction, and intimacy maintenance); and prosocial functions (conversation and teach-inform). The main objective of this study was to investigate how the eight dimensions change over time in a sample of healthy older adults after an intervention based on simple reminiscence and subsequent follow-up.

Participants were randomly assigned to the treatment or control group.

Participants were evaluated individually before, immediately after, and 3 months after the intervention.

Participants included 139 healthy older adults (71 intervention group and 68 control group).

Ten weekly sessions lasting 2 hours each were administered, based on a simple reminiscence program.

Participants were assessed with the Reminiscence Functions Scale.

After the intervention, in the treatment group, there was a significant increase in the self-positive functions of problem-solving and death preparation, and these effects were maintained even at the follow-up; there was a significant reduction in the self-negative functions of bitterness revival and intimacy maintenance; and there was a significant increase in the prosocial function of conversation.

When applying an intervention based on reminiscence, it is important to evaluate how it influences these functions because this information can help us to modify the objectives of the intervention and increase its effectiveness.

To explore the changes in quality of life from the acute hospitalization period to 6 months after discharge in patients with first-ever ischemic stroke and to identify the association between resilience and the course of quality of life.

A prospective longitudinal cohort study.

This study was conducted in Shanghai, China.

Two hundred and seventeen stroke patients were recruited for an initial questionnaire survey from two tertiary hospitals from February 2017 to January 2018.

None.

Quality of life was measured using the Stroke Scale Quality of Life. Resilience was assessed using the Connor–Davidson Resilience Scale. Other validated measurement instruments included the modified Rankin Scale and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. A multilevel model was used for the analysis of repeated measurements and to determine the association between resilience and quality of life.

Quality of life scores significantly improved over the 6 months after discharge (B = 7.31, p < .0001). The multilevel model indicated that resilience was positively correlated with the course of quality of life (B = .133, p < .0001), independent of stroke severity (B = −.051, p = .0006), neurological function (B = −.577, p < .0001), hospitalization days (B = .023, p = .0099), anxiety (B = −.100, p =< .0001), depression (B = −.149, p < .0001), time (B = .360, p < .0001), and the interactions of time with hospitalization days (B = −.008, p = .0002), neurological function (B = .021, p < .0024), depression (B = −.014, p = .0273), and time (B = −.031, p < .0001).

Resilience played an important role in predicting the self-reported course of quality of life in stroke patients. Our findings emphasized the reasonableness and importance of developing suitable resilience-targeted clinical strategies for improving prognosis in stroke patients.

To evaluate the effect of the PROPER intervention in nursing home residents with dementia on the prevalence of psychotropic drug use and neuropsychiatric symptoms.

A cluster-randomized controlled design with two parallel groups (intervention versus usual care) and assessments at 0, 6, 12, and 18 months.

Thirty-one dementia special care units within 13 long-term care organizations in the Netherlands.

Three hundred eighty nursing home residents with dementia

The PROPER intervention consisted of a structured and repeated multidisciplinary medication review, supported by education and continuous evaluation.

Prescriptions of antipsychotics, antidepressants, anxiolytics, and hypnotics, and occurrence of neuropsychiatric symptoms.

The prescription of any type of psychotropic drugs increased in the intervention group, and decreased in the control group, with an estimated difference of 3.9 percentage points per 6 months (p = 0.01). Effects for the individual drug groups were minor (differences of 1.6 percentage points and below per 6 months) and not statistically significant. The occurrence of neuropsychiatric symptoms remained stable in both the intervention and control groups during the follow-up of 18 months.

The PROPER intervention failed to demonstrate effectiveness in reducing the prevalence of psychotropic drugs. It may be interesting to enrich the intervention with components that address personal attitudes and communication between nursing home professionals, not only with respect to the prescription of psychotropic drugs, but also to neuropsychiatric symptoms.

The study has been registered in The Netherlands Trial Register (NTR3569).

To explore the relationships between dose changes to antipsychotic and/or benzodiazepine medications and resident outcomes, including variations in neuropsychiatric symptoms, quality of life (QoL), and social withdrawal, within a multicomponent, interdisciplinary antipsychotic and benzodiazepine dose reduction program.

Prospective, observational, longitudinal study.

The Reducing Use of Sedatives (RedUSe) project involved 150 Australian Long-Term Care Facilities (LTCFs) incorporating auditing and benchmarking of prescribing, education, and multidisciplinary sedative reviews.

A convenience sample of LTCFs (n = 28) involved in RedUSe between January 2015 and March 2016.

Permanent residents (n = 206) of LTCFs involved in RedUSe taking an antipsychotic and/or benzodiazepine daily. Residents were excluded if they had a severe psychiatric condition where antipsychotic therapy should generally be maintained long-term (e.g., bipolar disorder, schizophrenia) or were considered end-stage palliative.

Neuropsychiatric symptoms (Neuropsychiatric Inventory, Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory (CMAI)), QoL (Assessment of Quality of Life-4D), and social withdrawal (Multidimensional Observation Scale for Elderly Subjects-withdrawal subscale) were measured at baseline and 4 months where nursing staff completed psychometric tests as proxy raters.

There was no evidence that psychometric measures were worsened following dose reductions. In fact, dose reduction was associated with small, albeit non-statistically significant, improvements in behavior, particularly less physically non-aggressive behavior with both drug groups (−0.36 points per 10% reduction in antipsychotic dose, −0.17 per 10% reduction in benzodiazepine dose) and verbally agitated behavior with benzodiazepine reduction (−0.16 per 10% dose reduction), as measured with the CMAI. Furthermore, antipsychotic reduction was associated with non-statistically significant improvements in QoL and social withdrawal.

Antipsychotic and benzodiazepine dose reduction in LTCFs was not associated with deterioration in neuropsychiatric symptoms, QoL, or social withdrawal. Trends toward improved agitation with antipsychotic and benzodiazepine dose reduction require further evaluation in larger, prospective, controlled studies.

Post-diagnostic psychosocial interventions could play an important role in supporting people with mild dementia remain independent. The Promoting Independence in Dementia (PRIDE) intervention was developed to address this.

The mixed methods non-randomized, pre-post feasibility study occurred across England. Facilitators were recruited from the voluntary sector and memory services. Participants and their supporters took part in the three-session intervention. Outcome measures were collected at baseline and follow-up. To evaluate acceptability, focus groups and interviews were conducted with a subsample of participants and facilitators.

Contextual challenges to delivery including national research governance changes, affected recruitment of study sites. Thirty-four dyads consented, with 14 facilitators providing the intervention. Dyads took part in at least two sessions (79%), and 73% in all three. Outcome measures were completed by 79% without difficulty, with minimal missing data. No significant changes were found on pre and post assessments. Post hoc analysis found moderate effect size improvements for self-management (SMAS instrument) in people with dementia (d = 0.41) and quality of life (EQ5D measure) in carers (d = 0.40). Qualitative data indicated that dyads found PRIDE acceptable, as did intervention facilitators.

The three-session intervention was well accepted by participant-dyads and intervention facilitators. A randomized controlled trial of PRIDE would need to carefully consider recruitment potential across geographically varied settings and site stratification according to knowledge of contextual factors, such as the diversity of post-diagnostic services across the country. Letting sites themselves be responsible for identifying suitable intervention facilitators was successful. The self-report measures showed potential to be included in the main trial.

Positive psychiatry offers an unique approach to promote brain health and well-being in aging populations. Minimal interventions through behavioral activation to promote wellness are increasingly available using self-guided apps, yet little is known about the effectiveness of app technology or the difference between clinician-supported behavioral activation versus self-guided app methodologies.

Investigate the difference in users and outcomes between two methods of the Fountain of Health (FoH) positive psychiatry intervention for behavioral activation to promote brain health and well-being: (1) clinician-assisted and (2) independent app use for behavioral self-management.

As part of a larger knowledge translation intervention in positive psychiatry, two specific methods of a behavioral activation intervention were retrospectively compared.

Two subsets of patients were compared; 254 clinician-assisted patients; 333 independent app users.

A minimal positive psychiatry intervention in frontline care using the FoH health and behavior change clinical tools

Main outcomes were changes in psychological (health and resilience, well-being scores) and behavioral indices (goal attainment, items of goal SMART-ness). User profiles (age, sex and completion rates) were also compared.

Clinician-assisted patients were more likely to be male, older, and have lower health and resilience scores at baseline. Clinician-assisted patients had notably higher completion rates (99.2% vs. 10.8%). Psychological outcomes (improved health and resilience, and well-being) were similar regardless of intervention method for those who completed the intervention. Behavioral outcomes revealed clinician-assisted patients set goals that better adhered to key goal-setting items.

Clinician–patient relationships appear to be an important factor for intervention completion and behavioral outcomes, while further exploration of best practices for intervention completion using health apps in clinical practice is needed. A preliminary goal-setting methodology for effective behavioral activation, to promote brain health and wellness, is given.

Nursing home residents with dementia are sensitive to detrimental auditory environments. This paper presents the first literature review of empirical research investigating (1) the (perceived) intensity and sources of sounds in nursing homes, and (2) the influence of sounds on health of residents with dementia and staff.

A systematic review was conducted in PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus. Study quality was assessed with the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. We used a narrative approach to present the results.

We included 35 studies. Nine studies investigated sound intensity and reported high noise intensity with an average of 55–68 dB(A) (during daytime). In four studies about sound sources, human voices and electronic devices were the most dominant sources. Five cross-sectional studies focused on music interventions and reported positives effects on agitated behaviors. Four randomized controlled trials tested noise reduction as part of an intervention. In two studies, high-intensity sounds were associated with decreased nighttime sleep and increased agitation. The third study found an association between music and less agitation compared to other stimuli. The fourth study did not find an effect of noise on agitation. Two studies reported that a noisy environment had negative effects on staff.

The need for appropriate auditory environments that are responsive to residents’ cognitive abilities and functioning is not yet recognized widely. Future research needs to place greater emphasis on intervention-based and longitudinal study design.