Experiences of living alone whilst waiting for a dementia diagnosis

  • Research type

    Research Study

  • Full title

    Exploring experiences of individuals living alone whilst waiting for a potential diagnosis of dementia

  • IRAS ID

    353527

  • Contact name

    Francesca Daniels

  • Contact email

    fdaniels1@sheffield.ac.uk

  • Sponsor organisation

    University of Sheffield

  • Duration of Study in the UK

    1 years, 4 months, 31 days

  • Research summary

    This study will explore the experience of individuals who live alone, waiting for a diagnosis of dementia. Research indicates that receiving a diagnosis of dementia is a very emotional time, which can be distressing.There has been very limited research on pre-diagnosis experiences of individuals who live alone and what prompted them to pursue a potential diagnosis of Dementia. This study aims to understand these experiences and address a gap in the literature.
    Participants will be those who live alone and are waiting for a potential dementia diagnosis and will be recruited from NHS memory clinics in Yorkshire. We will aim to recruit 12-15 participants, with diversity relating to age, gender and ethnicity. Potential participants will have to have had one appointment at least in the memory clinic to be eligible to take part and other exclusion criteria for participants is only if they live with family.
    Participants will take part in one semi-structured interview, either in person or via videocall, dependent on their preference.
    The findings will be used to develop guidance to support clinicians when someone who lives alone is referred for assessment and diagnosis in the memory clinic.

  • REC name

    North West - Greater Manchester East Research Ethics Committee

  • REC reference

    25/NW/0080

  • Date of REC Opinion

    2 Apr 2025

  • REC opinion

    Favourable Opinion