Conceptualising the Role of Dementia Champions Across Health and Social Care: A Qualitative Study Informed by Theory of Change (The DemChamp Study)

Abstract

Objectives

People who work in health and social care frequently come into contact with people living with dementia, highlighting the need for a dementia aware and competent workforce. Some health and care services have implemented ‘Dementia Champions’ (DCs) to address this, but the role is rarely seen in domiciliary homecare services. We aim to conceptualise the DC role across health and social care to learn how it is implemented in practice and consider how it can be applied to homecare.

Methods

We conducted 30 semi-structured interviews with health and social care workers who either work as DCs or have experience/knowledge of working with them. We used framework analysis to analyse the data, informed by a Theory of Change (ToC) approach which involved identifying the ‘inputs’ involved in the role (tasks and responsibilities); and the short, medium, and long-term mechanisms required to implement, embed, and maintain the role.

Results

We identified key tasks and responsibilities of a DC which varied between and within sectors and services. The was a lack of role clarity and rarely a role description, which was considered a barrier to the role's success. The DC role is typically voluntary with no remuneration and performed on top of existing roles with no protected time for specific DC tasks. DCs typically take on the role due to a passion for good dementia care and a desire to make a difference, meaning feedback and feeling valued were important. The DC role provides an opportunity for career development, which was considered essential to retaining DCs, and health and social care workers generally. We present these findings as five themes which map onto our ToC framework to explore how the DC role is implemented, embedded, and maintained in practice.

Conclusions

Across all services, there is need for role clarity, with a DC role description at the outset to set out the tasks, responsibilities, and boundaries of the role. The DC role needs protected time for workers to implement it and undertake training. We will use these findings to develop and refine our ToC framework to reflect its applicability for the homecare sector.