Ageing in place with dementia: contextual scoping of under-served communities in the North East of England

Introduction

For health and social care provision to be relevant and equitable, it is vital that we understand the care experiences of people with dementia who are ageing in place in underserved communities.

Objectives

This award will support Kate to develop a grant application and pursue other research opportunities which are co-produced with key stakeholders in underserved communities in North East England. The proposed research will be an ethnographic study exploring how health inequalities intersect with formal and informal community-based dementia care.

Methods

Two activities will be prioritised. Firstly, Kate will familiarise herself with academic and practitioner dementia-related expertise. This will enable her to transfer my ethnographic experience in health and social inequalities to dementia-related research and identify how she can contribute to the evidence base informing dementia care.

Secondly, Kate will undertake community consultation and engagement activities to develop collaborative relationships with organisations and individuals who are connected to several underserved groups in North East England. These activities will act as a basis from which to understand the accessibility and the interests of different communities and therefore the location and direction of future research.