Investigation of the positive caregiving experiences of family members caring for individuals with dementia

The data of the study that was conducted to examine the positive caregiving experiences of family members who care for individuals with dementia was conducted between March 2022 and January 2023 in 7 different inpatient care services and home health services units of Kocaeli Gebze Fatih State Hospital. The sample consisted of 167 individuals with dementia and family caregivers.The data were collected by face-to-face interview method, Diagnostic Form for Care-Receiving and Care-Giving Individuals, Revised Standardized Mini-Mental Test, Neuropsychiatric Inventory, Katz Activities of Daily Living Scale, Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Scale, Scale for Positive Aspects of Caregiving Experience (SPACE). In the analysis of the data; number, percentage, mean, standard deviation, Pearson correlation test, t-test, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and post hoc (Tukey, LSD) tests were used. The average age of caregivers is 45.6±14.81; 71.3% of whom are women; 83.8% said that they have received support during care; 97% said they have willingly accepted the caregiving process; and 38.9% stated that they have had a positive experience during the care process. The average age of individuals care-recivers is 79.4±9.57; 59.3% of whom are women; 77.2% with Alzheimer's type dementia; and 71.3% are in the advanced stage of the disease. The caregivers' total mean score of SPACE is 118.48±17.10. From the subscales of SPACE, a significant relationship was determined between personal gain, self-respect, social aspect of care and the average age of the caregiver, and between self-respect, social aspect of care and years of education (p<0.05). No significant results were obtained between the demographic characteristics of the caregivers and the total score of the SPACE. As a result, caregivers have a sufficiently positive caring experience in during the care process. Determining, consolidating, and improving the positive care experiences and integrating these to nursing care plan can be suggested. Key Words: Dementia, Caregiver, Positive Caregiving Experience, Nursing