As rates of dementia increase, there is an increased proportion of dementia sufferers with challenging behaviours (BPSD) in hospitals and aged care facilities. Most have impaired decision-making capacity and many object to medical treatments, care interventions and residential placement. Consequences include serious safety risks to patients themselves, other residents, care staff and family members, with reports of incidents of aggression and assaults in hospitals and aged care facilities increasing significantly. Conversely, the use of restrictive practices threatens the safety, autonomy and dignity of dementia sufferers.
The 2018 Australian Aged Care Royal Commission identified overuse of restrictive practices as an area of concern requiring immediate reform. This has lead to better understanding of regulatory processes and procedures in the Aged Care sector, the need for better education of staff working in the sector and the establishment of purpose-built behaviour support units. Nevertheless, the ethical challenges remain.
Join Drs Sarah Baldwin and Robyn McCarthy for a discussion of this ethically challenging area.