Study protocol Implementation of the Veder contact method (VCM) in daily nursing home care for people with dementia: an evaluation based on the RE-AIM framework

ABSTRACT

Objectives: People with dementia in nursing homes benefit from person-centred care methods. Studies examining the effect of these methods often fail to report about the implementation of these methods. The present study aims to describe the implementation of the Veder contact method (VCM) in daily nursing home care.

Method: A process analysis will be conducted based on qualitative data from focus groups with caregivers and interviews with key figures. To investigate whether the implementation of VCM is reflected in the attitude and behaviour of caregivers and in the behaviour and quality of life of people with dementia, a controlled observational cohort study will be conducted. Six nursing home wards implementing VCM will be compared with six control wards providing Care As Usual. Quantitative data from caregivers and residents will be collected before (T0), and 9–12 months after the implementation (T1). Qualitative analysis and multilevel analyses will be carried out on the collected data and structured based on the constructs of the RE-AIM framework (Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, Maintenance).

Conclusion: By using the RE-AIM framework this study introduces a structured and comprehensive way of investigating the implementation process and implementation effectiveness of person-centred care methods in daily dementia care.

KEYWORDS:

• Dementia
• implementation
• Veder contact method
• RE-AIM framework
• quality of life

Trial registration:

• Dutch Trial Registration NTR4248

Acknowledgments

We are grateful to Marieke M. Westra from Foundation Theatre Veder for her support in describing the Veder contact method (VCM) and to Fred van Mourik and Maggie Oattes for their contribution to writing this article in scientific English.

Ethical considerations

This research project has been approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of the VU Medical Centre in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

Disclosure Statement

None.

Additional information

Funding

This study has been made possible by grants of the research group of Inholland University of Applied Sciences, Fonds NutsOhra and Health agency VGZ.