Increasing numbers of people with dementia reside in single-person households, yet little is known of their experiences and priorities. This exploratory Australian study elicited perceptions of seven people with dementia living alone, regarding their domestic environment and its surroundings. The general aim was to identify unmet service needs in this vulnerable population. Drawing upon the theoretical concepts of ‘the will to mobility’ and ‘life-space’, we identified four factors of particular salience to our respondents. These were access to public space, social distance and proximity, changing meanings of space and objects, and imaginative co-presence. Participants provided useful insights into a soon-to-be-common scenario in which increased numbers of people with dementia will be living without a resident carer. The findings have implications for the development of more personalised and targeted dementia care in the domestic setting, more inclusive public planning and more extensive public education programmes.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	ageing, dementia, living alone, will to mobility, life-space, dementia services, public planning, housing, single person household
Research Division:	Health Sciences
Research Group:	Health services and systems
Research Field:	Health and community services
Objective Division:	Health
Objective Group:	Specific population health (excl. Indigenous health)
Objective Field:	Health related to ageing
UTAS Author:	Lloyd, BT (Dr Barbara Lloyd)
UTAS Author:	Stirling, C (Professor Christine Stirling)
ID Code:	94483
Year Published:	2015 (online first 2014)
Web of Science® Times Cited:	10
Deposited By:	Health Sciences B
Deposited On:	2014-09-10
Last Modified:	2017-12-06
Downloads:	2 View Download Statistics